


University Life

by Auto_Alchemechanicist



Category: Hunger Games Series - All Media Types, Hunger Games Trilogy - Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games (Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, F/M, Painter!Peeta, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-26
Updated: 2018-11-10
Packaged: 2019-07-02 22:56:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 45,650
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15806238
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Auto_Alchemechanicist/pseuds/Auto_Alchemechanicist
Summary: A request from my friend, imakemywings: College AU: “My car’s out of gas, think you can give me a ride?” A story about the flourishing relationship between Peeta and Katniss as they navigate through university and various other opportunities that come their way while flirting, mutually pining, and exchanging banter.





	1. Part 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Without the Hunger Games being an actual thing, I figured Katniss and Peeta would have a more laid back and comfortable friendship.
> 
> I hope this is okay. It’s my first time writing everlark so I hope it’s readable. This is fairly soft so it’s rated K, but the following parts vary in length. They get longer as the story progresses, though. Enjoy!
> 
> Disclaimer: The Hunger Games trilogy belongs to Suzanne Collins. I just use her characters as barbie dolls to play with and write stories about them.

Of all the days for her car to fail her it had to be today. She couldn’t say it wasn’t her fault, though. Katniss always kept in mind to fill up her tank when she noticed she was running out, but last night, it had slipped her mind completely. She was stressed about finishing up her midterm assignment that was due the following morning and if she didn’t get her ass in gear, she wouldn’t get it done. It was one of those moments of inspiration that hit her where if she didn’t write down what she was thinking, she would lose her point. She needed a better grade seeing as her last writing assignment earned her a C-. Right, that time, she had forgotten to save her work and the lights went out, taking her nearly finished assignment with it. She managed to half-ass it in time, but she knew it wasn’t her best work.

Now, she knew she had a decent paper and it was safe in her pin drive; it was ready for printing and turning in. If only her car would start, but reality hit her and reminded her gas tanks didn’t magically fill up on their own. She couldn’t afford to waste any more time. Her class started soon and she needed to get to the library. Walking would take her longer and she would surely be late and running wouldn’t exactly help all that much either. Times like these she’d wished she’d gotten a lease for an apartment complex that was closer to her university, but the one she was renting was far cheaper. The downside was it was farther away. Her roommate, Madge, had left some time before, and her best friend, Gale, was already in class… She hated asking for favors and bothering people, but she was desperate and if her pride didn’t hurt her so much, she would have walked up to her neighbor already and asked for a ride.

A head of blond hair caught her attention. He was on the other side of the parking lot, but Katniss’ vision didn’t toy with her as she recognized who it belong to. Peeta Mellark was walking towards his car, ready to hop in when she saw his head turn in her direction. She hadn’t realized she’d called out—more like yelled out—his name until he answered her with an equally loud “Hey!”

Katniss couldn’t really say they were friends, but they weren’t strangers, either. They’d grown up together in the same sector of District 12 and it was common for students to enroll in its university, which was a couple of hours away from their home.

She walked towards him, hoping her throat wouldn’t constrict when she’d start talking. Suddenly, she felt embarrassed without having to say a single word yet. Her predicament seemed silly to her now. She had an assignment to turn in, though.

Sighing, Katniss approached him, but averted her eyes from his. Making eye contact wasn’t one of her strengths. “So, um, my car is out of gas…think you can give me a ride to school?” She didn’t know why Peeta smiled at her, but it was such a bright and contagious one that she couldn’t help smiling as well.

“Sure. I was heading over there.”

He didn’t tease her by asking why her tank was empty, though she suspected Gale would. She appreciated it because she hated giving people explanations about her actions. Instead, once they were settled in Peeta’s car—it wasn’t new, but it was well kempt, taken care of, and clean—he asked how her semester was going. Small talk wasn’t one of Katniss’ strengths either, but she would try for Peeta’s sake since he was going out of his way to drive her.

“Well, I have an assignment due right now, which is why I’m a mess,” she answered, letting out a chuckle she didn’t even know she was withholding.

“It’s that time of the semester,” Peeta quipped, adding he had his own project due at noon. “What’s your paper on?”

“Comparing the democratic government we have today to the totalitarian one of the dark days. Writing about wars isn’t my cup of tea, but when there’s a new government being instilled, that piques my interests.”

Peeta smiled again, but it was different this time. A wry smile. “You sound like a revolutionary.”

Katniss rolled her eyes, though they held no malice as a smile of her own graced her features. It was somehow easy to talk to this boy she hardly frequented. “I don’t think I’d have the strength to even participate in a rebellion, much less be a ‘revolutionary’.”

“You never know. You could be the face of a rebellion.”

“Please, to be the face, I’d have to be attractive, which I’m not.”

“Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, you know.” Katniss couldn’t figure out what he said. What did he mean? Was he…calling her pretty?

“Well, the beholder clearly doesn’t know what beauty is.”

There was a pause in the conversation, which was partially interrupted by the hum of the travelling car and the turn signal. Katniss hadn’t noticed the radio was off and she wondered if Peeta purposefully kept it off so they could talk of if it was just a habit of his to have his car silent. He didn’t look like the type to stay quiet, but she had been wrong before.

She cleared her throat before speaking. “So, what’s your project about?”

“Not nearly as exciting as your paper. It’s a blueprint for one of my design classes. We’re given scenarios to work on like a small business or even a home, and we have to put together what it would look like. It’s kind of hard to explain without showing it to you, but there’s basically different dimensions to focus on.”

“It sounds like a lot of math goes into it.”

“Quite a bit. I don’t enjoy it, but I don’t struggle with it, either.”

Katniss wouldn’t have ever considered going into architecture like Peeta. It required a lot of spatial intelligence and creativity, two things she did not possess. She was good at arguing and analyzing politics, but she wasn’t sure if that would ever interest Peeta.

With the conversation, she hardly felt the ride or the time pass by, so it surprised her when Peeta parked and the car came to a halt.

“If you want, I can give you a ride back when you finish.”

She didn’t expect the offer, nor had she even thought about asking for one. She owed him one. If anything, she should be offering him a ride instead. Yet there was nothing forceful about his offer, and she even felt rude rejecting it. What could it do, really?

“Yes, please. Although…at what time do your classes end?” She hadn’t even thought about time being an inconvenience until now.

“At around two. Yours?”

Katniss bit her lip. “Three. If you don’t want to wait for me it’s oka—”

“It’s fine, Katniss. It’s just an hour,” Peeta rolled his eyes good-naturedly.

So just like that, it was set? It felt too easy, or maybe it was so because she herself didn’t wait for anyone or even gave them rides. Peeta, on the other hand, didn’t even need to be asked for one. She wasn’t sure how to react. Overthinking it would probably make her look like she was trying too hard anyway. Leaning in, she thanked him and gave him a kiss on his cheek before getting out of the car and telling him she’d see him later.

Over the course of the day, she thought maybe kissing him hadn’t been a good idea and it made her uneasy that she’d made things awkward with Peeta. She had to apologize, she knew she had to! Surely, it had freaked him out or something, just as she was freaked out herself. However, when she went to meet him at the parking lot, she saw him next to his car surrounded by friends that were laughing at something one of them had said. It was almost impolite to have to interrupt the fun. She didn’t have to, though. Peeta spotted her and waved at her and suddenly the group of friends dispersed, as if being dismissed. She saw a couple of Peeta’s friends eyeing her, but she wasn’t sure if they were scrutinizing or simply just looking at her, but she didn’t want to feel so self-conscious in front of strangers.

“I think I may have upset your friends,” Katniss said when she came into Peeta’s hearing range.

“That’s just Finnick and Johanna. They’re okay,” Peeta said with a reassuring tone that made Katniss want to believe him.

Something possessed Katniss to show her gratitude. It was the middle of the day and from the looks of it, their midterms were over, which gave them some time to spare…

“Have you eaten?” she asked as Peeta started to drive.

“Not really. Finnick wanted me to try something he made, but it was green and it didn’t look very…appetizing,” Peeta laughed.

Katniss had a feeling this Finnick person wasn’t the most pleasant guy to hang out with, but if Peeta enjoyed his company then maybe he wasn’t so bad.

She smiled, noting it had been at least the fourth time Peeta got one out of her in one day. “I’m going to make lunch back at the apartment. Would you like to join me?”

She could tell this was something Peeta didn’t expect because she saw the way he paused for words. “You don’t have to pay me back for the favor, Katniss.”

“Then, don’t think about it as payback. Think of it as two friends having lunch together.”

There was another short pause as Peeta thought about it. “What’s on the menu?”

“I forgot the name of it, but it’s basically ham and cheese wrapped in chicken breasts.”

“Sounds fancy.”

Of course it did and the way Katniss prepared it made it all the more elegant, as if she’d ever worried about making her food look presentable. “Madge taught me how to do it.”

“Does it go with some kind of cream?”

“I don’t usually aim so high, but I can prepare one to make it even  _more_ impressive.”

The image of ham and cheese wrapped in chicken didn’t sound so remarkable to begin with but covering it with cream would at least hide the sorry excuse for a meal she was offering Peeta. When they were nearing the apartment complex, Katniss remembered why she was in Peeta’s car to begin with.

“Peeta…I just remembered that my car is out of gas…” With what had gone on during the day and her focusing on class and turning in her assignment, it easily slipped her mind once again. Now, she may have caused Peeta the good parking space he had spotted and she began berating herself for it.

“Hmm, how about this: you go start on that fancy food you told me about and I can get you gas from the station?”

Katniss looked at him with confusion. How would he even…get the gas? As far as she knew, a car had to be in front of a gas pump for that.

“I have an empty container for it.”

She wanted to ask if this was common knowledge to have a gas container at the ready in case of these emergencies, but she was still processing this information to even find the courage to voice any of her thoughts. Instead, she reached for her wallet to give him money, but he stopped her by placing his hand over hers.

“Don’t worry about it, Katni—”

“I’m not letting you pay for my gas!” First, it was expensive, and second, she would be owing him  _another_  favor. Then, she thought about it and wondered if he was paralleling her behavior with favors. “And you are not paying me for the food.”

“Then, don’t think about it like that. Think of it as a friend helping another friend out.”

He  _was_  mimicking her, and she would attempt to argue, but Peeta’s hand was still covering hers and she could feel his warmth on her fingers, which surprisingly felt nice. It wasn’t like her to give in so easily, especially when it involved something so sensitive like money, but she figured if she said no, then she had a feeling she would have to walk to the gas station or ask someone else to take her. Once she agreed, she noticed Peeta retracted his hand—he needed it to drive—and she felt the sudden lack of warmth. She had to push that thought aside as she walked towards her apartment and saw Peeta drive off. If that had been Gale, she would have never agreed to let him help her, yet there was something about Peeta that convinced her. She considered that maybe it was the warmth in his hand or his kindness in general, but that didn’t seem like a good enough explanation. Perhaps it was just him and there were no explanations needed for her to understand. Somehow, she had the feeling she would be frequenting Peeta now, and although she didn’t get close to anyone, she hoped she could allow herself that closeness with him. She might have gotten ahead of herself, but what could it do, really?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What I mean by the same sector of District 12 is that the Seam and the Merchants’ area are near each other, but the district must be a lot bigger than just what we see from the film’s perspective. I’ve always imagined the districts to have people living around it and not just in one area, but that’s just me. Also, apologies for butchering an architecture degree with my description of a class and if I made a mistake and anyone happens to be studying architecture, please let me know if I made a mistake. I hope everyone got that last line of foreshadowing. ;)


	2. Part 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I started this au thanks to this request I got from my frond and lovely home skillet biscuit imakemywings so I suggest reading that as I refer back to it during some points in this coming fic. I’m tying this into some requests I got from starsmahogany because they really just wrote themselves and it was great fun. I wrote around 9k words and I had to break it into parts, so here’s the first one. I’ll post the following parts soon!
> 
> Disclaimer: The Hunger Games trilogy belongs to Suzanne Collins. I just use her characters as barbie dolls to play with and write stories about them.

Something that Katniss noticed after inviting Peeta to eat over at her apartment was that she could get along with him easily. He was talkative, but not intrusive, and he didn’t press her to make conversation if there were moments of silence. She’d interacted with lots of classmates, especially during her university years where she had to participate in group projects or study groups. She didn’t feel a connection with them, though, and only considered them acquaintances rather than actual friends. She’d only counted a handful of people she could include in her list of friends and even then, she couldn’t really say that any of them were her ‘best’ friends. Except for maybe Gale and Madge, but after those two started dating, it was more of Katniss being Madge’s roommate and the couple’s third wheel. She didn’t particularly mind because they weren’t ridiculous like other couples, and as far as she knew, neither Gale nor Madge were big fans of public displays of affection. Still, she knew that she had to give them their privacy and space, which left Katniss to drift on her own and navigate her university experience by herself.

There was something soothing about being alone and Katniss couldn’t complain. She had time to herself and would immerse herself in activities she enjoyed, like swimming, running, hiking, and reading. She could get lots of studying done, too. At times, she missed her family, especially her sister, Prim. She’d call them on occasion and would talk to Prim about everything and anything, but she was more inclined to hear what Prim was up to. Katniss considered her life boring; studying for tests, writing essays, and exercising weren’t exciting to her, even if she noted Prim’s excitement when she did talk about her routine. She didn’t really talk to her mother, but when she did, it would be short and slightly uncomfortable. They weren’t close, not like her and Prim, but Katniss made an effort to speak to her mother. When her father passed away, it had hit her mother the hardest and she’d fallen into a deep depression. Katniss and Prim were still too young and were unofficially left in the care of their uncle Haymitch, who wasn’t the most reliable adult to begin with. He was a war veteran and spent his days drinking, cooped up in his house, a stranger to the world. However, he saw that his sister-in-law and nieces needed the support and did what he could to help them. Katniss spoke to him, too, at times, but it was mostly just her checking in to see if he hadn’t drowned in alcohol. Despite not getting along with him too well, she still loved and cared about him.

Yes, Katniss had few relationships she made the effort of preserving, so it took her by surprise when Peeta, of all people, showed her the right amount of understanding. She’d had a few classmates ask her why she didn’t say much, and it was always hard to answer that because she wasn’t a woman of many words. She believed she was a woman of ways, if anything. She’d be lying if she said she didn’t mind being asked such a ridiculous question and she wished she didn’t have to give people an answer. Perhaps the difference between Peeta and the other classmates she’d talked to was that she knew Peeta since they were children. They had had class together, but they weren’t in the same groups of friends. Katniss always sat on the other side of the classroom because of alphabetical order, which kept Peeta in the middle of the rows of desks while Katniss was usually either in the front or the first row.

One reason why she definitely felt fondly of Peeta was because during the funeral service that was held for her father, Peeta had been one of the few classmates that had approached her and offered her some comfort. They were young and awkward, and Katniss didn’t know how to properly accept affection from people that weren’t part of her family, but she appreciated how he walked up to her and gave her his condolences and a hug that was brief and left Katniss wanting him to embrace her longer. She hadn’t forgotten that.

Her invitation for him to have lunch with her felt a lot more meaningful then.

* * *

She let a couple of days pass before she sent him a text offering him a ride to school. She wondered if that would make him mad, that she wanted to return his favor so quickly, but then she remembered that she’d cleared it with lunch. She was surprised when he accepted and she promptly waited for him outside his apartment for him to join her. After that, they slipped into a routine Katniss hadn’t expected: exchanging rides to school, having lunch at each other’s apartments and together at school, meeting up at the library to have coffee. They’d even gone to the gym together and that’s when Katniss learnt that Peeta was still into boxing, which explained why he was so fit. They ran together and even if she didn’t know where it came from, she felt smug that she could beat him at that, though he didn’t stay too far behind. She wouldn’t dare lift the weights he’d lift, though. She knew he was strong, but she didn’t know how Peeta could lift weights off and over his chest or use the dumbbells (somehow, fifty pounds was too much to believe at first until she remembered he could lift sacs of flour that weighed one-hundred pounds back at his parents’ bakery).

She’d met his friends, too, and it was difficult for her to see just how he, Johanna, and Finnick got along so well when they were all so different from one another. Peeta and Finnick were roommates, but she wondered if Johanna had been a guy, maybe the three of them would have shared an apartment. She tolerated them for Peeta’s sake, even if she had a feeling Johanna didn’t really like her. She ignored it the best she could because they were all Peeta’s friends, therefore making them mutual friends. She got to see more of Finnick, but there was always the silent agreement between the two boys that Finnick would leave when Katniss came over to their apartment. Maybe he had things to do and she just so happened to come at the time when he was leaving, or maybe he didn’t want to feel like a third wheel himself… After he started dating a sweet girl named Annie, it made more sense to Katniss why he rushed out of the apartment. If anything, she admitted she commended the three for having a strong bond. When Peeta introduced them to her, he had mentioned they were from different districts. From how they interacted, however, Katniss wouldn’t have known from how the three laughed at their jokes or radiated an energy of giddiness. It was quite adorable to observe, though she wondered if she was being the intrusive one in the friendship and maybe that was why Johanna didn’t want her to be a part of their group, at first.

After some time, though, Johanna’s sarcasm with her became less cutting and more teasing, but maybe Katniss was just getting used to her dark humor. A similar thing happened with Finnick, who would occasionally throw some flirtatious comments at her and then use his own type of sarcasm with her. She even noticed Peeta had two sides of himself when he was with Johanna and Finnick and when he was alone with Katniss. He, too, was sarcastic, but he didn’t need to use as much dark humor as his two friends. The three were a bit perverted…perhaps ‘a bit’ was an understatement. It came more from Finnick and Johanna, who teased Peeta, and the three even said Peeta and Finnick were boyfriends, which is why they rented an apartment together, and Johanna was missing out on witnessing all the sex they’d had. What made them laugh made Katniss feel queasy and somewhat uncomfortable because she didn’t know how to respond to that. How did someone follow up to that? Shouldn’t have Peeta told her he and Finnick were a thing? Did she miss that? Was she that dense? Her questions were answered when Peeta explained this was a recurring joke between them. She didn’t hear the end of it from Finnick and Johanna, who saw how unsettled she was and called her innocent and pure.

“You should see the videos we have on Facebook,” Finnick chuckled. “Jo records so many Peeta and I don’t even catch her at times.”

“Which is weird because I’m always asking you questions loud enough for my phone to pick up our voices,” Johanna said while rolling her eyes.

“You should get a microphone to make it easier, Jo. Instead of carrying your ego, you can carry that,” Peeta suggested, taking a sip from his water.

“Please.  _You_  need some ego to go with that blond head of yours. I’d give you some of mine, but I don’t think it goes with ‘soft puppy dork’.”

“I forget it goes better with ‘hard bitch asshole’.”

Katniss had to admit…despite that jab sounding harsh, it was funny coming from Peeta, and it was confirmed when Finnick burst into laughter at his comeback.

* * *

Johanna made Katniss curious about those videos she mentioned. She hadn’t used Facebook in years and couldn’t even remember her password for her account, trying a few that she may have used when she made it. After finally getting access, she searched for Johanna and found said videos all over her timeline. They featured Finnick, Peeta, and her, and they had hundreds of likes and comments on them. It was strange to her how people took the time to watch these videos until she reminded herself that that’s what she was doing at the moment and she shouldn’t judge. Curiosity got the best of her and she decided to search for Peeta. There were pictures, videos, and posts of him, but she noted that they were tagged and didn’t necessarily come from him.

Had she seen him use his phone? It wasn’t likely because Peeta tended to give his full attention to the people he was talking to and he seemed generally focused on other things. The only instances she recalled seeing him use his phone were when he checked the time or if he answered a text. She scrolled through his timeline for around three hours and she didn’t know where all that time went, but she became engrossed in the multiple videos and photos that Johanna and Finnick tagged Peeta in, and even the few posts made by Peeta himself. Videos of the three friends grocery shopping, working out, hanging out at the pool, playing video games at their apartments, eating together. Photos of Peeta lifting weights, casually reading, painting, cooking, baking, holding Finnick’s dog, standing side-by-side with Finnick and Johanna while they made funny faces. Posts Peeta wrote about how he was glad the apartment had an oven, talking about how parking on campus wasn’t fun, gushing about going to a concert with friends, explaining how boxing was so liberating, talking about how eating lunch with the right person was so refreshing and amazing.

Katniss knew he was a social person, but she hadn’t imagined how popular he really was. Like the videos, his photos and posts had received a lot of attention from people, especially girls who posted with emojis that had hearts for eyes, complimenting on how handsome he was, and other similar comments. She wondered where all those people came from until she went back to the top to send him a friend request and saw he had close to five thousand friends. She didn’t even know that many people existed on a single platform, yet here they were in Peeta’s friend list. She noticed that Prim was one of his friends, which seemed weird since she hardly knew of a time Prim and Peeta had ever talked to one another.

She checked to see her own profile and because she had abandoned it, there wasn’t much to look over. She had a few pictures of herself and there were some recent ones Prim had taken and tagged her. Compared to Peeta, she was an isolated creature. She wasn’t that big on adding people as friends because if they weren’t her friends in real life, why would she add them on Facebook? How hypocritical. She did see a decent picture of herself holding the bow she’d use for archery class when she was in high school. She was still into that and even took a couple of courses in university, but she had to focus on her degree and hadn’t had the time to use it. She used it for her profile picture and attempted to work on her profile, but she added a couple of things before leaving it like that. Her life was nobody’s business and she didn’t want to write what she did on her profile. Before she logged out, she got the notification that Peeta had added her.

* * *

Katniss wasn’t sure how or when it happened, but there came a time when she felt her heart swell when she saw Peeta. After the few months that they had spent together as friends, she’d felt a small tug becoming bigger and then she couldn’t explain why it felt like it wanted to rip her heart out and then slap it back into her body. It’s not like she hadn’t had crushes before. She knew what they felt like. However, she knew the…feelingof  _longing_  to be with someone. It’d happened to her once with her first boyfriend, Darius, but they hadn’t lasted much and since then she didn’t really think about having another significant other. There were dates she’d gone on, but none of them ever stuck to her. She realized she hadn’t gone on a date since she started hanging out with Peeta.

That first time she felt actual butterflies trying to escape from her belly was when she saw him lying down on a rather uncomfortable looking bench outside of her classroom as he waited for her to exit. That’s what they did. Their classes had different schedule times so they both had the chance to wait for one another and even get some studying done. However, during their drive to school that morning—it was Katniss’ turn—he was falling asleep. He had been working on another project that kept him up until 3:30 am and he’d hardly gotten any sleep. Katniss wished she could help him with getting his sleep, but there wasn’t much she could have done. He was so tired he hadn’t even noticed she’d driven to Starbucks to get him some tea and while she was at it some hot chocolate for herself. Now, she found him sleeping, his head resting on his backpack, looking peaceful. It hurt her to have to wake him up, but she knew if she let him sleep, he’d miss his class.

She ran a hand through his blond hair, pushing it away from his eyes. “Wake up, sleepy head,” she said softly, almost like a coo. She leaned in and kissed his forehead as a sign of comfort.

He stirred and his eyes fluttered open before he focused on her face. Sitting up, he rubbed his face with his hands and yawned. “I’m so tired, Katniss.”

“I know. The day is almost over, though. Just one more class for you to finish.”

“I don’t wanna go.”

“But you have to. I’ll drag you if you refuse.”

He chuckled at her empty threat and stood. “Would you really?”

“Don’t challenge me, Peeta. You may be stronger than me, but I could still push you,” Katniss smirked.

“How about you guide me?” He wrapped his arm around her shoulder as a hint and she rolled her eyes, but she agreed by wrapping her arm around his waist.

She managed to walk him to his class but getting him to sit down and stay awake was a whole other deal.

“You are such a little boy right now, Peeta.” Her tone was teasing rather than demeaning, which got a laugh out of him.

“Yet you’re still here tolerating me.”

“I do it because I care.”

“Now you’re making me feel special.” There was a small smile gracing his lips, but she knew he could only muster so much from exhaustion.

“I want you to feel awake!”

He sat down on a desk, finally, and she helped set his backpack down. “I’ll wait for you outside.”

She turned to walk out, but she felt him tug her wrist and she suddenly felt his warm arms around her. “No, don’t go.”

“I can’t sit in your class, Peeta.” She tried not to laugh, but it was hard with how clingy and affectionate he was being with her.

“You can sit on me, though.”

She felt a blush creep on her face while eyes landed on them.

“How about I sit on the bench outside and you pay attention to your class?”

In defeat, he let her go, allowing her to face him. She kissed his hair before ruffling it and squeezing his arm, feeling warmth rush through her. Her skin prickled and she tried finding a reason as to why she felt this way, but it was the sleepy boy she left in the classroom that was to blame. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If anyone has any suggestions or prompts for the university life au, I’m all ears. I’m mixing some of my experiences into it (I, too, navigate my life alone and I am pretty okay with that lol), especially the friendship between Jo, Finn, and Peeta. If your group of friends don’t joke about being gay with one another, then that’s not friendship lmfao (I don’t play around with my girl friends, but my guy friends play around fucking each other all the time. It’s a thing and it’s funny). Idk when I’ll post the next part, but it’ll be here before you know it. Let me know what you all think!


	3. Part 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m so flattered by the positive reception to this au and the comments I received have encouraged me to continue. Thank you to everyone that’s taken the time to read this little tale. I have more in store and here is but a piece, which I hope can suffice until my next update. Enjoy!
> 
> Disclaimer: The Hunger Games trilogy belongs to Suzanne Collins. I just use her characters as barbie dolls to play with and write stories about them.

Katniss  had  to give Peeta credit for making it till the end of the day to crash and fall asleep, or at least until they made it back to his apartment. He didn’t even reach his bed and opted for the living room couch, even if it was probably uncomfortable. Nevertheless, she found a blanket in his room and covered him with it.

She had been at his apartment plenty of times to know where to find things. She prepared a mug with a teabag for when he’d wake up and started on dinner for them. They usually worked together to make meals, but Peeta needed his sleep and she would not disturb him just so they could cook.

Finnick came into the apartment some time later, a tired expression on his face. He’d probably had a long day as well.

“Did you replace my roommate?” Despite his exhaustion, he still managed to give her a mischievous smile.

“Please, you would be the one Peeta would replace,” she answered, her own playful smile on her lips.

“You’re like his mother. Look at you: making him food while he sleeps.”

Katniss shrugged. “Don’t be jealous just because this isn’t for you.”

After spending so much time with Finnick and Johanna thanks to Peeta, she had gotten up to speed with their jokes and jabs. Had she been a new friend and used that response she would have felt like she was being unnecessarily mean and biting. However, she knew her answer wouldn’t hurt Finnick since they tended to say worse things to one another. Katniss had simply adjusted and learnt from them all. Sometimes, harsh comments would get thrown around and Peeta would step in to defend her from his friends, but she wasn’t bothered because she knew she could hurt them with her words if she wanted to. There was a difference between being defensive and playing along.

By the time she finished cooking, Finnick had left to meet Annie at her apartment, leaving Peeta and Katniss alone once again. She heard Peeta yawn as he sat up.

“What a coincidence that you wake up  _just_  as I’m about to serve us dinner,” she said with a smirk.

“My stomach can sense quality food from a mile away,” Peeta answered, stretching his back. “What’d you make?”

“Your favorite: stew.” Katniss brought the pot to the table carefully, setting it on the center where the heat mat rested.

“I think you mean that’s  _your_  favorite,” he chuckled and got up to help Katniss set the table. “I’ll eat anything you make, though.”

“It’s not like you have a choice.”

Peeta pretended to be pensive about it. “Well, I  _could_  order something, but then I’d be wasting some good stew. And then, I’d get a long lecture from you about how awful it is to waste food. And then, you’d remind me of how long it took you to make it. I’ll save myself all that trouble.”

Katniss couldn’t help but laugh. Was she that predictable? “You are not only smart, but you are a wise man, Peeta.”

“I’ve learnt that I have to keep a woman happy or else I’d be facing her wrath,” Peeta shrugged.

“Don’t tell me your priority is to keep me happy,” Katniss said with mock sarcasm.

“Then, I won’t tell you.” He brought the plates to the table and Katniss served them dinner. “I do admit I have my priorities straight. It just so happens that one of them is to make someone happy.”

She wasn’t sure how to respond to that as she wasn’t sure who he was really referring to. “That person is very lucky… Now hurry up and eat your stew while it’s hot.”

“I could just heat it up!”

“It won’t taste the same!”

Peeta rested his face on his hand as he looked at her, laughing with amusement at their exchange. “There’s no winning with you.”

“You should know that by now.”

Putting his wisdom to use, Peeta kept quiet save for the chuckles he couldn’t help holding back, which made Katniss look away from him else she risked choking on her food. She had never laughed so much in her life, from what she remembered, until she got to know Peeta and now she couldn’t stop. The real winner was him because he got the last laugh out of her.

* * *

Gray eyes scanned the bottom of the pool until they located the colorful rings that had been arrayed in a line, each far enough for a challenge. There was a liberating feeling about swimming that Katniss loved and when she found out the gym had a pool—a bigger one than the one at the apartment complex—she was thrilled and couldn’t wait to jump in. She was practicing on reaching the bottom, which was the one skill she struggled with. Her dives were decent, her speed allowed her to reach the other end of the pool in about four breaths, and her strokes let her gracefully swim across without stopping. After doing this for years, it felt like a reward rather than a work out. It definitely felt like a cool down what with her being in the water, but her muscles still ached and she was more than sure that she would be sore the following day.

Peeta and her worked out together by running and he had showed her how to work some of the machines that appealed to her, but there were exercises in which they did alone. He did weights and boxing while she swam. If one of them finished early, they would wait for the other until they were done so they could leave together. She thought it was a good thing they didn’t depend on each other for all of their exercise routines and gave each other some space, too. Peeta had mentioned he only knew the basics for swimming like floating and not drowning, so Katniss didn’t insist on him to join her. She did offer to teach him and he agreed to it when their exams week would pass.

Katniss pushed through the water to swim downward and reached for a ring, lacing it around her arm as she reached for the next one. She managed to take three from the floor before she floated back up and took a deep breath, feeling how her chest ached and her lungs screamed. They didn’t look like much but pushing herself on the deep end of the pool took the most energy from her. Taking the rings was the easy part. She went back to get the remaining three after taking a few breaths and decided to call it a day.

She spotted Peeta sitting next to her things with a sketch book in hand. Katniss wondered how he had the ability to draw without difficulty, and it made sense to her why he would choose a career like architecture. Although, he could have also succeeded as a painter. She had been in awe at the canvases he showed her that were in his room, full of vivid colors and beautiful scenery. She walked towards him, wondering what it was that he was doodling.

“Drawing people swimming?” she asked raising an eyebrow.

“More or less,” Peeta answered with a shrug before putting his pencil down and closing his sketchbook. Only he found a way to carry that in his gym bag.  _‘In case I felt inspired’_ , he had said to her once.

“May I see it when you finish?”

“I can show you right now, if you want.”

It must please Peeta that Katniss showed interest in his sketches, or at least that’s what it looked like to her. Not that there was anything wrong with that. If anything, she gave him encouragement and she admitted he looked adorable when he got enthusiastic. He flipped to the current page he was working on as she sat beside him, a towel wrapped around her to keep from getting water everywhere.

It was a rough sketch, but she could make out the figure of a girl standing along the edge of the pool and what looked like a braid that swayed to the side, as if she had shaken her head to get water off her hair. Her mouth hung open slightly as she realized Peeta had started to sketch her.

“I think your drawing looks way better than I do in real life,” she said, a playful smile on her lips.

“Hardly. I’m afraid about not being able to do you justice.”

Katniss rolled her eyes, even if it was flattering to be Peeta’s muse for one sketch.

“You could draw me as a fish and it wouldn’t make a difference.”

It was Peeta’s turn to raise an eyebrow at her. “I think I’ll draw your gills on your throat.”

“Don’t forget a fin on my back,” she added. “Make me look scary.”

Peeta put the notebook away as he spoke. “For me to do that, you would have to already be scary-looking, which you’re not.”

Katniss gave him a scowl, trying to prove her point that she was, in fact, as frightening as she claimed to be.

“Wow, you certainly terrified me,” Peeta said dryly.

“Good because I could be your worst nightmare.”

“Katniss, you’re as terrifying as a new born kitten.”

With the strap of her gym bag on her shoulder, Katniss began to walk away from the pool with Peeta beside her. “Just because I’m not as tall as you are doesn’t mean I can’t still scare the shit out of you.”

“I doubt it but keep telling yourself that.”

As she showered, she replayed Peeta’s words in her head and she somehow felt a bit bothered by the fact that he didn’t find her intimidating. She’d show him one day he should be scared of her. He may have been bigger than her in height and size, but he was an even bigger softy. She let it go after a while and breathed out, thinking about his sketch.

Why would he decide to draw her, of all people, anyway? She probably looked like a feral animal if anything, not some attractive swimmer like Annie or Finnick. Maybe Peeta would make her look pretty. He had such a talent for making even the most mundane things look amazing when his fingers created his artwork.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I admit this started off as a short story, but then it grew as I kept writing and I want to write as much as I can about the relationship between these two. I love banter, flirting, and flirtatious banter, so I hope I did something right here. Maybe this feels like these two instances aren’t related, but believe me, I’m following a sort of timeline. This matters to their story. I am open to suggestions about this au if anyone has any ideas they’d like to share with me! Whether it’s for their friendship or when they are dating (I promise, they will get together, just not today *winks*). Let me know what you think. I will update soon!


	4. Part 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have been playing around with this AU and it’s going places I didn’t even imagine. It wasn’t supposed to get this long, but there’s things that just write themselves and that makes me happy. I hope this makes people happy as well. Thank you for all the support this has been getting. You all don’t know how flattered I feel. The last part was a bit on the short side, but this part will hopefully make up for that. I hope you guys enjoy!
> 
> Disclaimer: The Hunger Games trilogy belongs to Suzanne Collins. I just use her characters as barbie dolls to play with and write stories about them.

They had agreed to start on the shallow end of the pool. Katniss had a strong feeling Peeta was scared of the water, so she wouldn’t make fun of him for something like that. She was scared of things, too, and she wouldn’t want for anyone to pick on her for them. Instead, she gave him reassurance that she wouldn’t let him drown.

“Katniss, I trust you, but not the water,” Peeta laughed.

“The water is your friend, too. It pushes you back up at some point,” she said. “Now, on your stomach.”

She started him off with warm up exercises to avoid getting cramps. As a show of support, she did them with him, encouraging him so he’d continue if he got tired. She had borrowed a floating device from the lifeguard and had Peeta practice with it first for kicking and holding his breath. Despite his nervousness, he wasn’t doing so bad. However, there were instances when he’d freeze and he’d hold on to her. She allowed it, wanting for him to feel comfortable enough so he could keep going. He was hesitant to let it go when she suggested he’d give swimming a try without the help.

“Katniss, do you know how much I weigh? I’ll sink easily.” It was a rarity for Katniss to hear Peeta whine about something. He was actually making an excuse and it surprised her. She raised an eyebrow in annoyance and shook her head at him.

“Peeta, you’re not getting out of this one. You won’t sink. Like I said before, the water will make you float if you start to go down.”

She explained how to properly use his arms to push the water back and to always keep his hands cupped so the water wouldn’t go through his fingers. That would slow him down and it would affect his way of swimming. She also showed him how to breathe while his head was submerged, letting out air through his nose slowly, and how to turn his head to breathe for air before getting it back into the water. She demonstrated for him so he could get the idea, swimming a good distance from him so he could try.

She didn’t expect for him to learn so quickly because it was easier said than done. Peeta did try and he did manage to swim a little bit, but he did end up sinking and Katniss couldn’t help letting out a laugh when she saw how irritated he was. She walked towards him and coaxed him to get on his stomach again.

“I’ll hold you up so you know more or less where you’re supposed to be.”

She placed one hand on his chest and the other just above his knees, letting the water do most of the work for her. Katniss couldn’t mistake the goosebumps she felt run through Peeta’s body, but she wasn’t sure if it was because he was still afraid or if it was because she was touching him. Come to think of it, she hadn’t touched his bare chest before. She’d seen him shirtless a few times, but he had put on a shirt shortly after as he knew bared skin and nudity made her uncomfortable. She’d touched his arms as they sometimes intertwined them while they walked together on campus. She tried pushing these thoughts to the back of her mind so she could focus on Peeta’s swimming lessons, even if it proved to be difficult at first.

Katniss wasn’t sure how long they took in the pool, but after many attempts, Peeta was able to swim the small distance between the wall and Katniss. It was sloppy, but he’d done it and she was proud of him for doing so much in one lesson. Not being able to help herself, she wrapped her arms around him and gave him a tight hug.

“And you thought you’d sink,” she scoffed at him playfully.

“I mean, I  _did_  at some point,” he snorted.

“You kept going, though. Next time, you’re swimming across the pool. And you’re doing squats.”

Peeta’s mouth gaped open in disbelief. “I thought these were swimming lessons, not a complete workout!”

“You think swimming isn’t a complete workout? And why are you complaining? You box  _and_  lift weights!” As far as Katniss knew, that was far more physically demanding than her workouts.

“Fine, fine. I’ll give swimming its credit. But you have to go easy on me, I’m barely learning.”

“I  _am_  going easy on you. Be grateful I’m not making you race me.  _Yet_.”

Peeta caught her wet braid and began to play with it, curling the tip around his index finger. “You get so competitive when you’re in your dominant sport, you know?”

“I don’t find that to be a bad thing,” Katniss shrugged.

“One of these days, I’ll teach you how to box,” Peeta said, raising an eyebrow.

A smirk danced on Katniss’ lips. “Now, who’s getting competitive?”

“Well, it’s like you said, it’s not a bad thing.” It was Peeta’s turn to grin at her, reflecting her sarcasm.

It had just occurred to Katniss that she hadn’t let go of Peeta and they were standing so close to each other there was hardly any space between them. She hoped the water concealed the blush on her face as she stepped back.

“Well, then, since we both agree competition is alright, you’re doing sit-ups and push-ups along with the squats.”

“You’re doing them with me, at least fifty of each.” Peeta hadn’t let go of her hair and the mischievous smile hadn’t left his mouth. Katniss wasn’t sure what this feeling she got was, but it was aggressive in nature yet not at all negative. It made her smirk return as she felt butterflies flutter in her stomach.

“Of course, I am. What kind of a trainer would I be if I just let you do the exercises alone?”

“An awful one?” Peeta offered.

“Exactly.”

They spent the rest of the week working on Peeta’s freestyle as they went from the shallow end of the pool to a part marked with six feet. Katniss was no longer touching the floor and just treaded water as she watched Peeta swim from one side of the pool to the other. She suggested they go to the deep end so Peeta would lose any remaining fear of the water and after a moment of thought, he agreed.

“I’ll teach you how to tread water. It’s not that hard. You can either swim like a frog or you can cut through the water with your legs like scissors. Your arms stay in the water and you push it down and to the side. While doing that, you should be able to keep yourself up enough for you to talk.”

She demonstrated it a couple of times, ordering him to look underwater to get an idea, before she let him try it. She had him hold on to the floating device for a moment before he let go, but once she saw that he was sinking, she held on to him as he reached for her arm.

“Your legs must be really powerful if you can keep yourself from sinking,” he said as he held her hands.

“Not really, I just have more practice,” she answered, squeezing his hands gently. “Try it with your legs and I’ll hold you.”

It was interesting teaching Peeta because Katniss saw him being vulnerable and it somehow made the experience more endearing. There was no way he could bullshit his way out of swimming the way he could in other situations, though he was clever and intelligent enough to get things right in his courses. Swimming required practice and that’s with what she was helping him. When she saw him panic, she would reassure him that she was with him and wouldn’t let anything happen to him. Finnick may have had a point when he told her she was like his mother, but somehow that wasn’t the correct way to label the way she cared about Peeta. Katniss had developed a maternal instinct when she had to take care of her sister when their mother checked out, despite Uncle Haymitch helping them. She felt a similar instinct with Peeta, but it wasn’t entirely maternal. There was a mixture of friendship and something else she couldn’t quite place. It was definitely something she hadn’t felt with anyone else; it had developed because of Peeta and it belonged only to him. What she knew was that she wanted to help him succeed, so perhaps that was why she had the patience to teach him how to swim.

She slowly let go of him so he could try again and had the satisfaction of watching him keep himself up for at least half a minute.

* * *

Katniss looked at herself in the mirror, evaluating the dress she wore. When Peeta told her his art work would be in an exhibition at the university, it had excited her. More than anything, she felt happy that his talent was not only receiving attention, but also getting recognized. He asked her to attend the event—with an official invitation—and as much as she didn’t enjoy social gatherings, she would go for Peeta. She was going to see him and he was the one that mattered to her, not the crowds of people that would be present. She had to research what was appropriate for her to wear to an event like that and looked for a decent cocktail dress. She didn’t feel so comfortable at first, but after looking at herself, she figured she wouldn’t be able to change the way she looked even if she tried. Madge offered to do her hair and make-up and she agreed, letting her do what she thought was best for the occasion.

After the few weeks she had spent teaching Peeta to swim, she hadn’t thought he’d have enough energy left for him to work on any art, but she was pleasantly surprised when this all came up.

Riding in each other’s cars had become second nature for them, comfortably sliding into the passenger seat while the other drove. Meeting outside each other’s apartments came with that as well, so when Katniss opened the door to let Peeta in, she was stunned to see him wearing a suit. It had to be a big deal if they were going out in such formal wear. She never went out dressed like that, not even on dates. There were no complaints from her in her mind, though, since the fitted suit Peeta wore made his workouts worth the sweat and time at the gym. He looked attractive, to say the least. She was sure she didn’t look as appropriate as he did, but she would keep her comments to herself for now.

They rode to the event together, but when they got there, Katniss felt like a fish out of water. Suddenly, she wondered if she had to know anything about art to even be there, but then she remembered Peeta was the one that was part of the exhibition and she was there as a guest. All she would do was look at paintings and sculptures and other sorts of artwork.

To Katniss, there was nothing normal about the works of art as she looked around, trying to decide which were the least odd. Maybe Peeta’s looked the best to her because they belonged to him, but there was something about his work that stood out and presented how skilled he truly was, compared to the rest of the artists. He talked about his paintings with guests who came by to ask him about them and even though she couldn’t stay beside him every minute of the event, she still felt proud of him for having the courage to enter something like this. She knew she wouldn’t have, but Peeta had confidence to spare.

A particular painting caught her attention. The vivid colors were one reason, but it looked vaguely familiar to her. She had seen this painting before…only not as a painting, but rather a rough sketch drawn on Peeta’s sketchbook. Obviously, the sketch paled in comparison to the finished work that hung before her with the combination of cool and warm colors complementing one another. It was her. She recognized her braid anywhere and Peeta had done something beautiful with the way it looked. She doubted her real hair had the shine his painting had, yet he managed to make even the tips of her split ends look magical. She wasn’t standing on the edge of the pool, but rather, she stood on a different platform. She wasn’t an art expert, but she had a feeling she was supposed to be shaking off what seemed like water. The orange against the blue hues made it look like sparks were flying off the liquid, setting ablaze the sky above her. The light from the fire shone on her olive skin, giving it an angelic glow. Peeta didn’t paint her. He painted a goddess. And there was a large crowd admiring the very painting she was, growing louder as their excitement escalated.

“She’s on fire!” She heard someone say.

“And she’s setting fire to the sky!” Another person added.

Katniss spotted Peeta, who unfortunately, couldn’t be at two places at once, but still did his best to go from one painting to another before he reached the fiery piece that had drawn so many people’s attention. She hadn’t seen people make such a fuzz over a single art piece, but she was somehow glad it was the one that Peeta had obviously spent the most time on. Maybe it was a stretch, but if Peeta had started working on it the moment he got home after he did the rough sketch, it may have taken him a few weeks. At least, that’s what Katniss thought.

When the crowd finally dwindled, she was able to approach him. He gave her a sheepish smile, and Katniss thought he may have felt a bit embarrassed about the painting. He had no reason for that.

“It’s beautiful,” she said, looking up at the colorful work of art. “I think your sketch would be jealous.”

“I think so, too,” he chuckled. “The painting would be jealous of the real thing.”

She looked at him then, not knowing what to say even though her thoughts were abundant.  _‘Why me of all people?’ ‘What made you think I’d make a good muse?’_ But all she could say was, “The real thing would be shocked at how beautiful the painting makes her look.”

Peeta took her hand in his as she looked away, feigning interest in the sculpture set up across from them.

“Art imitates life, Katniss.”

She brought her attention back to him. “What do you mean by that?”

Peeta shrugged. “Well, sometimes, people can inspire a work of art to be created. It just so happened that the person in the painting inspired me to draw her.”

“She’s on fire,” Katniss said, repeating what she had heard.

“And she gives off sparks,” Peeta winked.

Even though Katniss was still trying to figure out what he meant, she couldn’t help giggling.

A man’s voice caught her attention and made her turn to look at Peeta again.

“How much?”

Peeta looked at Katniss, confusion evident in his expression. “How much for what?”

“This painting,” the man said, as if it were obvious. “It’s gorgeous.”

Katniss wasn’t sure if she stared at him because of his oddly colored hair or because his admiration for Peeta’s painting was inflated. It was probably the blue hair, though.

“I’m not…sure if we are able to sell our pieces,” Peeta answered, a shy smile on his face.

“But something must be arranged for that!” The man’s bright smile and white teeth made Katniss think she would go blind, or maybe she did momentarily. He extended his hand to introduce himself as Caesar Flickerman, and Katniss couldn’t help thinking he sounded familiar. He definitely wasn’t from District 12, so her guess was he came from a wealthier district or even the Capitol. He turned to look at her and his eyes widened, turned to look at the painting, and then turned once again to see her again. “It’s you! You’re the girl in the painting!”

At a loss for words, Katniss gave him a forced smile before gazing at Peeta.

“Yes! She inspired me after I saw her swimming.” Peeta was able to read her mind so well by now that she was happy she could communicate with only her eyes. He drew the attention away from her, at least for a moment, and for that she was grateful. At least, until they introduced themselves to Caesar.

“Katniss Everdeen, the Girl on Fire,” he said with amazement. “Peeta, I must have your painting. I’ll have a special place for it back in the Capitol.”

There were things Katniss wasn’t understanding and she was positive that Peeta was on the same blank page as her. However, the situation was taken off Peeta’s hands once he led Caesar to the director of the program.

“I think you have an admirer,” she teased.

“Only one?” Peeta asked, taking her hand in his once again.

“From the looks of it, hundreds,” Katniss deadpanned. She didn’t need to remind him about all his Facebook followers, especially the female groupies.

“Are you one of them?”

“Perhaps.” She tried her hardest to keep a serious expression on her face, but it was difficult with the way Peeta looked at her. His easy smile was always so convincing and managed to steal a laugh from her.

“Any way I can make you a committed admirer?”

The hardest task for Katniss was to make eye contact, and with Peeta sometimes she succeeded and other times, she couldn’t stand looking into his mesmerizing blue eyes. This was one of those tough moments and she opted to look down at her shoes, but their intertwined fingers made it even that a challenge.

“Keep painting,” is all she could say. It felt strange for her to think of telling him to keep painting her the way he did for the piece people were raving about, but she couldn’t find that to be fair of her part. She couldn’t give back something as valuable to Peeta; her talents were scarce unless he accepted more swimming lessons as a talent of hers to share with him.

The rest of the night was a bit of an unbelievable blur. Pictures of Peeta were taken with his pieces, more with the one that was sold to Caesar Flickerman, and even she was asked to stand with Peeta since she was the inspiration for the now coveted painting that would be part of the Capitol. She didn’t feel worthy of being in such pictures because she didn’t recall even so much as posing as a contribution and giving her credit didn’t feel right to her. Even when Peeta assured her it was fair and he was glad they could recognize her as the face of The Girl on Fire, she wanted all the attention for Peeta because he earned it.

She still wondered why exactly he’d decided to use her as his muse. One thing that she was certain was that Peeta’s concerns about doing her justice had been cleared. He managed to make her look other-worldly, and that left her thinking whether he truly believed she looked like some kind of goddess or if he simply had an eye for bringing out the beauty in everyone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Told you guys the last part and this one were connected. ;) It’s getting to be a lot of fun with these two. I hadn’t even planned on bringing in Caesar, but he is such an everlark shipper, I couldn’t resist. I’m not exactly sure if art exhibitions work like this! I researched somewhat, but I could be very wrong about the ordeal and I will take any criticism if anyone knows how they work! As for the swimming, people learn at different rates. It took me around a month to learn the freestyle stroke properly. I’ve been swimming for 3 years and I barely learned to tread water (it depends on how the lifeguards for swimming lessons teach stuff, I guess). And I’ve had crushes on two of the lifeguards that have taught me things. They’re cute! And holding onto them when I was scared? Embarrassing, but worth it. I think Peeta would agree! Please let me know what you think!


	5. Part 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This turned out to be a decent size, yay. Since this is an au and they’re not in the Hunger Games, I figured Katniss and Peeta would deal with some things differently. You’ll see what I mean. This was a bit rushed, though, but like I mentioned before, this is heading towards some directions I didn’t anticipate. It’s fun, it’s taking me for a ride lol. I hope it makes sense and you guys enjoy!
> 
> Disclaimer: The Hunger Games trilogy belongs to Suzanne Collins. I just use her characters as barbie dolls to play with and write stories about them.

Peeta’s yawn broke Katniss out of her daydreaming as she directed her attention to him. They had been in the library for a couple of hours trying to get some studying done, but Katniss had taken a mental break of twenty minutes from reading her textbook. Sometimes, she wondered why she had chosen to study plants until she remembered she actually liked them. Still, the subject could be boring at times and her attention span was limited when she tried to cram so much information in her brain. Peeta was hard at work on his laptop completing a design, but from the look on his face, he didn’t look so engaged either. Katniss couldn’t help yawning herself and it made Peeta chuckle.

“We deserve some sleep,” he said as he rested his head on his hand.

“Or some coffee,” Katniss suggested. After spending an awful long time sitting in one place, a trip to the campus café in the first floor of the library didn’t sound like such a bad idea. “Want some tea?”

Peeta thought about it for a moment before he looked at her. “Please.”

Really, when either of them said ‘coffee’, they meant anything else but that. They had learnt each other’s orders, which weren’t difficult to remember unless they wanted a fancy concoction of a drink, but that was rare. Peeta always fancied tea over coffee because he wasn’t a fan of the rush from the caffeine, even if to Katniss that didn’t make much sense since tea also had caffeine.

_“Yeah, but tea’s never betrayed me. Coffee’s made me have convulsions and some heavy anxiety. It’s not fun to experience.”_

That sounded like a fair reason to Katniss. She, on the other hand, didn’t like the bitter taste of coffee, and instead preferred hot chocolate. The first time she tried it had been when she first heard someone order it in the coffee shop at the beginning of her freshman year and she’d fallen in love with the drink since.

As she waited in line to order, Katniss looked around casually, not intending to focus on anything in particular. She saw a group of people gathered around a table, but didn’t pay much attention to them as it was a common occurrence, even at the small space of the café. That was until she saw someone staring at her. Maybe they were just looking in her general direction and she was thinking too much into it, so she turned away in hopes that this would pass. But after ordering and waiting for the drinks, she caught the same guy looking at her and it made her feel uncomfortable.

She heard her name being called from the front counter indicating her drinks were ready to be picked up and made her way towards them when she saw the guy that had stared at her approach her. Great, what did he want? She wasn’t in the mood to deal with anyone, especially since she was so tired and groggy from reading.

“Katniss? As in Katniss Everdeen?”

She raised an eyebrow at him in suspicion. “Why do you want to know?”

“I saw you on the news.”

That sounded…a bit creepy. So, what if he’d seen her? It was just…

“The news?” At first, Katniss thought he was joking, so she didn’t believe him and figured whatever he was saying sounded absurd.

“Yeah, Caesar Flickerman was talking about you. And the guy you’re with, Peeta Mellark.”

It had taken her a moment to absorb what he was saying, but it was a moment too late to realize the group had gathered around her. Needless to say, the ambient became overwhelming very quickly. How could she escape them?

“Uh, thanks.”

Katniss wasn’t sure how to react. She had two hot drinks in her hands, her mind was scrambling to gather as much useful information as she could, and she felt like the claustrophobia was closing in on her. Her stomach felt queasy and she felt nervous, her eyes looking from right to left to find a space where she could fit so she could walk past the crowd. What did that mean? Surely, it shouldn’t be such a big deal.

She gulped and tried to walk past the crowd as nonchalantly as she could, hoping that she wouldn’t drop her drinks and would be able to make it to the elevator. Or maybe taking the stairs would be more convenient? They had to get tired of walking three flights of stairs, right?

It seemed like a good plan. It didn’t matter if she spilt hot tea or chocolate on her hands. All she knew was that being followed by people wasn’t something she was comfortable with. She didn’t want to stop to pull her phone out to text Peeta because that would slow her down and she wasn’t sure if she would be able to type else her fingers threatened to shake. And it’s not that she was scared of these people. She just didn’t like their proximity. She didn’t want to call attention to herself. She didn’t want to have notoriety.

When she approached the table she and Peeta were sharing, he took in her expression, which must have looked the way she felt, and stood to take the drinks from her.

“What’s the matter?”

Her heart pounded in her chest and she felt her stomach flutter and churn. “Just being followed by a crowd of people.” Her attempts to sound as casual as possible didn’t seem to convince Peeta.

“What?” His eyes were wide and any signs of exhaustion were gone as alertness replaced them. He looked around her, but Katniss wasn’t sure if there were still people behind her. She was just trying to breathe after walking up all those stairs and focusing on walking as quickly as possible.

“We can get out of here if you want,” he said. Katniss noted a different tone of voice in Peeta she’d never heard before. He sounded defensive—protective—and she wasn’t sure how to take it, but she appreciated it. She could take care of herself, she knew that, and she hadn’t depended on anyone else to defend her, but she couldn’t deny that having someone look out for her felt…nice.

“No, let’s just wait until it dies down,” Katniss responded, still out of breath. She could tell what she said made Peeta uneasy—being followed was already something to worry about, but followed by a crowd was something else entirely. She sat down and Peeta gave her the hot chocolate she had momentarily forgotten. Peeta was still looking in the general direction from which Katniss came, but she wondered if he spotted people that wanted to approach them.

Katniss wasn’t sure for how long they sat there in silence, but all throughout, she felt the warmth of Peeta’s hand as it gently held her free one. His comfort along with the drink she loved helped calm her down.

“Why were they following you?” Peeta finally asked. He was still concerned for her and Katniss had a feeling he wouldn’t let it go.

A few moments passed by as Katniss hesitated to answer. “The guy that came up to me told me he saw me on the news.  _We_  were on the news with Caesar Flickerman.”

Peeta intently looked at her, confusion crossing his face. “We’ve only talked to him once.”

“It’s probably about your painting, then,” Katniss added.

Peeta reached for his laptop and began to search for something until he found a video. Katniss gulped as she read the tiny letters on the screen. The video was marked with the day’s date and it seemed to have been posted earlier on in the day. She vaguely remembered then where she had seen Caesar Flickerman. Of course, he was a talk show host for the Capitol! The only reason her memory was fuzzy was because she hadn’t had the time to watch television from how busy she was. Remembering celebrities was beyond her care, except for a select few for films and authors she actually liked.

She took the earbud Peeta offered her so they could watch together and things began to make sense. The pictures that he and Katniss had taken at the art gallery with Caesar were on the screen in a form of slideshow. She disliked taking pictures because she didn’t think she was photogenic or attractive to begin with and they seemed pointless to her. However, Madge had done a great job with her hair and make-up that evening when she accompanied Peeta to the art show. She couldn’t recognize herself. And then there was Peeta in his flattering suit. Beautiful, confident, and charming. She felt out of place in the picture beside him despite own appearance.

Caesar discussed his adventure in District 12 and his visit to the art show that evening, talking about how talented Peeta was and his smart use of colors. He also complimented his inspiration, and pointed out Katniss’ beauty. His fellow host, Claudius Templesmith, commented on how breathtaking Peeta’s painting of Katniss was. No doubt, there was nothing Peeta couldn’t do with a paintbrush.

“Do you think there is something between the two of them?” Claudius asked with a playful smile.

“I would like to hope so. They look adorable together,” Caesar admitted in a charismatic and teasing tone. “I would paint my lover as well, if I could.” And then, he laughed in amusement.

They changed the subject to give the highlights of a following broadcast before the video ended and Katniss couldn’t stop dwelling on their conversation about Peeta and Katniss. She felt heat flood her face, but she was more than positive it wasn’t because of the hot chocolate she was drinking. She glanced at Peeta out of the corner of her eye and noticed he, too, was blushing.

Peeta closed his laptop and removed his earbud, but hesitated to say anything for a couple of moments.

“Well…at least we know why those people were following you.”

“Yeah… They’ll follow you, too,” Katniss pointed out.

“But it was just a short section,” Peeta said. “Why is it such a big deal to people?”

“Maybe because they know we’re here.”

They put their things away even if they hadn’t discussed leaving or staying. Katniss wasn’t sure why she was bothered by what the show hosts said. Peeta was a great person. She spent most of her time with him and enjoyed his companionship. They shared multiple activities together despite not having the same major and bonded about similar taste in books and music. If she had to pick anyone to share some kind of intimacy with, it would definitely be Peeta. However, the bad taste that was left in her mouth was because of the assumption Caesar and Claudius made about their relationship. They couldn’t see two people being close because then they automatically assumed they were in a romantic relationship. Whatever happened to friendship? She didn’t like the pretense of it all. She wondered if this bothered Peeta the way it did to her, but she doubted it because he tended to have different interpretations from her.

They discussed what their best option for exiting the library was in case there were people waiting for them and eventually agreed to walk out from the western entrance. It was less crowded and it led to the architecture building where Peeta’s car was parked. It was a miracle to Katniss that they were able to make it with relative ease. There had been a couple of people that greeted them, but that was the most attention they got now that they were aware of what could happen.

Katniss let out a breath she didn’t realize she was holding as she settled into the passenger seat. Both of them looked around, making sure they hadn’t been followed before Peeta began to drive. They rode in silence, but she always appreciated that it wasn’t bothersome. It gave her time to think and it meant Peeta understood that she didn’t want to talk. She was stressed and uneasy, and even if she didn’t mean to do it, she knew she would end up ignoring anything Peeta said. How he came to understand her was beyond her because he was a talkative person and could pick up a conversation with just about anyone. Why would he even consider being her friend when she wouldn’t provide the same kind of energy he had? Johanna and Finnick were chatterboxes with Peeta, and she was always the quiet one of the group compared to them. Yet here he was taking her to her apartment, comforting her, giving her space. Maybe since they were both opposites in that sense Peeta saw a balance between them that wasn’t available with their other friends. Katniss got along with Gale and Madge, but Madge could be quiet like her and that’s why they got along fine. Gale had more to say, but they were still quite similar in terms of experiences and tastes. How did she and Peeta fit so well? He made her laugh when she could have sworn it was difficult to get a smile out of her. They spent endless time together. They worked out together, which Katniss hadn’t even thought about as an issue. Before Peeta, she was a solitary person, wanting to run on her own and swim by herself. Then Peeta began to join her and now she was so used to his presence that any sort of absence would surely disrupt the balance of time itself. Maybe that’s why her stomach would flutter when she was with him.

Peeta found a parking spot near her apartment, but he didn’t make any move to leave the car or even open the door. The silence now became a bit tense and Katniss felt a new kind of uneasiness.

“I’m so sorry, Katniss,” Peeta said, his voice hushed and raspy.

She turned to look at him, wondering why he offered an apology until she remembered why they were so worked up in the first place.

“It’s not your fault,” Katniss responded, placing her hand over his. He knew that always comforted her, so she hoped that would have the same effect on him. “You couldn’t have guessed this would happen.”

“But…people are following you. You don’t have to go through that.” Katniss could tell Peeta felt more than guilty about the situation. Perhaps the guilt was about more than just their attention. Perhaps he also carried the talk show hosts’ conversation in his mind.

“I don’t think there’s that much we can do about it. We can try to get around it, though.”

“Avoiding people won’t be that easy, Katniss.”

“Maybe they’ll forget by tomorrow,” she offered, though she knew her comment held no hope in it and Peeta would read it as such.

“We’ll find a way… I won’t let them do anything to you.”

“I can defend myself just fine,” she muttered.

“I know you can. I just don’t think there’s anything wrong with having a little bit of help.”

Katniss wasn’t sure when it happened, but they had an unspoken agreement that they would protect each other. It was what they did and it felt strange not to offer a helping hand to one another. This was a situation she wasn’t sure how to even approach, much less handle, but at least she and Peeta would face it together.

She gave his hand a squeeze of reassurance. “Thank you.”

Peeta gave her a gentle nod before he looked out of his window. “Is that all that’s bothering you, or is there something else?”

He knew. Katniss didn’t have to read his mind to comprehend his question. He just wanted for her to talk about it.

“They think we’re dating,” is all she could say.

“Is it true?” Peeta asked. She felt his thumb gently brush over hers.

“No…we’re best friends,” she answered, confused as to where Peeta was going with this.

“So we both know what’s true.” He turned to look at her, a hint of a smile on his lips. “They live for rumors, Katniss. As long as we know where we stand, then the problem won’t be as big as we think it to be.”

Katniss let out a sigh. “Right.”

Even though Peeta’s reassurances weren’t enough to ease her mind, Katniss told herself over and over that what he said was right. There were various conflicting feelings in her head that evening after she and Peeta headed towards their apartments, but she failed to sort them out and hoped that by the next day, they would quiet down.

Instead, as she and Peeta drove to school the following morning, he talked to her about the phone call he received from Caesar Flickerman that morning, requesting another painting of his with his newly found muse. The painting wasn’t the issue nor was Peeta’s request the problem. It was his commissioner who would surely talk about it some more on his show and give them more notoriety. She didn’t want to feel so uncomfortable about it, but she had to talk about it with Peeta.

“Is there any way…to clarify things with him?” she asked, not wanting to make it such a big deal, but probably failing to do so.

She didn’t need to explain to Peeta what she meant. “Of course, Katniss. I’ll tell him when I give him the finished work.”

Somehow, that was able to calm her nerves, the strange feelings she had that wouldn’t settle.

“Would you mind if you pose for me this time?” she heard him ask. The question was timid and he paired it with a smile that was just as shy, but also genuinely sweet that warmth rushed through Katniss and she couldn’t deny his request.

“Of course, Peeta. Just tell me what I need to do.”

“Well, you’re going to have to be on fire this time.”

If Katniss hadn’t been waiting for the red light in front of her, she was sure she would have hit the breaks to hear him correctly.

“So you want to burn me?” she asked in disbelief.

“You have to live up to your name now,” Peeta shrugged as he laughed at her reaction.

Katniss rolled her eyes at his humor. “If I have to be on fire, so do you.”

“It’ll be synthetic fire!”

“Maybe Caesar will mention that in his show.”

Peeta couldn’t contain his laughter. “They’ll never forget us then.”

“Why does he want me on a painting, though? You could draw anything and it’ll look amazing.” She had a vague feeling Caesar was drawn to her, but she wanted to believe he liked the way Peeta’s paintings looked. Caesar didn’t have the creepy vibe.

“He probably likes the Girl on Fire theme,” Peeta said.

Katniss couldn’t think of a better explanation. “ _Great_.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I relate so much to Caesar. Also to Peeta because I, too, prefer tea over coffee. Anyway, Peeta as a painter wasn’t anticipated to be a big part of this au, but I mean, it is now and I’m not complaining. He’s getting to paint the love of his life, what more could he possibly ask for, besides a relationship, but I WON’T GIVE TOO MUCH AWAY and it’s not like it’s a huge secret, come on. I’m just building on their friendship because Katniss is the one that needs to catch up orz. I’m rambling because I finished this at 3 am. Let me know what you think and if you have any requests for this au, whether Katniss and Peeta are friends or dating (we’ll get to this at some point), feel free to send them to me.


	6. Part 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’ve noticed I’ve kept Katniss’s and Peeta’s relationship very platonic and innocent, but I think that’s the beauty of how friendship can develop into something more. In addition, this au wasn’t supposed to be this long, but I’m not complaining since it’s turning out to be a lot more fun now. I hope that I’ve been keeping them in character, too. That’s always been tough for me to do, but I’m still holding out for the ability to be able to do them justice. Thank you once again for all the support this story has been getting! It’s a joy to continue writing it!
> 
> Disclaimer: The Hunger Games trilogy belongs to Suzanne Collins. I just use her characters as barbie dolls to play with and write stories about them.

The televisions that hung from the walls in the science building had been showing alternating versions of various news reports about Katniss and Peeta’s encounter with Caesar Flickerman. It was, apparently, a big deal for District 12 to have two of their own having an interaction like the one they had, but it only made Katniss cringe. She wondered if she was overreacting about it, but then she remembered there were people that had been asking her about the situation all morning. Her damn classmates were far more excited about it than she was and it was getting on her nerves. She rolled her eyes as she walked away from the television she had been watching, but was met by a couple of students, followed by a small group, followed by a larger group. It was happening again and they were all talking at the same time—talking to her—overwhelming Katniss once more. Their comments were about how amazing she looked, how great it must have been to meet someone like Caesar, and how she and Peeta looked great together.

She covered her ears and hoped her desperate expression tipped off a few people that she was getting nervous, but that didn’t work. She didn’t even notice the crowd part because she was just trying to keep herself together in hopes she could magically escape.

“Alright, move it!”

That voice sounded familiar and Katniss wanted to feel relief, but instead it added a new layer of anxiety. She’d hoped Peeta would meet her, but instead it was Johanna who was making her way towards a disgruntled Katniss.

“Don’t crowd Brainless. She’s valuable cargo—hey, don’t touch her!” Katniss heard a swatting sound and a punch just as she felt someone brush their hand against her arm, and she could vaguely picture Johanna’s angry face with that tinge of mania in her eyes. “If you break it, you pay for it!”

Katniss gulped and turned to find her friend as Johanna took a hold of her wrist to drag her away from the crowd.

“Out of the way,” Johanna yelled. “I swear if one of you follows us, I will break your face!”

The crowd parted for Johanna—really, she was ramming into people—and she led Katniss out of the building, slamming the door in people’s faces. Once they walked a decent distance away where there were less people, they stopped and Katniss was able to breathe again. She hated people, but she loathed being stuck in crowds. They suffocated the life out of her.

“Thanks, Jo,” she said with a sigh, although she didn’t want to owe her anything even if they were friends.

“Yeah, whatever,” Johanna said with a wave of her hand. “Peeta couldn’t come meet you because he was stuck in a crowd himself and sent me in his place. I just so happen to be close by.”

When her class ended, he wasn’t outside in the hallway to meet her and Katniss felt his absence thanks to an ache in her chest. She hadn’t even gotten a text from him explaining why he hadn’t shown up, but this made sense. She wished she’d known so she wouldn’t have waited and allowed a crowd to form.

“So you’re the ‘Girl on Fire’ now, huh?” Johanna asked after a while. Her tone was mocking when she referred to Katniss by her new nickname.

“Apparently,” she said with a shrug. “Caesar gave it to me.”

Johanna sneered as she said, “Great” and looked away, but Katniss wasn’t sure if she was annoyed with her or if she was searching for someone. Probably the former.

“Why are you so moody about it? You’re not the one getting chased,” Katniss pointed out, her patience thinning quickly.

“Just don’t want it to feed your ego. You’re already pretty hard to swallow at times,” Johanna answered.

“You’re not exactly the most pleasant person in the world, either,” Katniss shot back.

“Damn right I’m not.” Crossing her arms, Johanna continued to look around before she focused on Katniss. “That would probably be Peeta.”

 _‘He’s pretty great,’_  Katniss thought. She nodded in agreement before saying, “Yeah, probably the friendliest person as well.”

“As much as you hate the attention, I bet it’s exciting for him,” Johanna said. She looked like she was trying to drill a hole through Katniss’s forehead with the glare she was giving her. What did Katniss do to piss her off?

This confused her, though. “He didn’t seem so happy about it, either.”

“Because you’re upset about it. You’re literally killing the mood. Not everything is about you, you know.”

There was so much venom in Johanna’s words. Katniss had felt like this when she first started to hang out with Peeta, Finnick, and Johanna, and she thought they were starting to be friends…until now.

“I wouldn’t be ‘upset’ if people weren’t following me around.” Katniss thought that was obvious enough. “And I never said this was about me.”

“Of course it’s not about you. It’s about Peeta.” Even though Katniss was angry with Johanna, she couldn’t deny she was right. “Have you even congratulated him?”

It hadn’t occurred to Katniss that that was something she had to do. She had been so absorbed in the fact that people were literally crowding her that she hadn’t even considered that this meant something positive for Peeta. She felt shame wash over her as she questioned what kind of a friend she was to Peeta. Her silence was enough of an answer to Johanna because she started laughing in disbelief. This only lasted a moment, though, because Johanna’s mocking grin shifted into a frown.

“I don’t think you realize how much this means to him, Katniss.”

“He wasn’t making a big deal about it,” Katniss tried to argue, but she was cut off by a scoff Johanna gave her.

“Again, he didn’t do that because you were upset. He was so concerned about your feelings that he didn’t even think about his.”

Katniss’s mind registered how selfish she had been. She normally thought about herself and her needs first before everyone else’s, but she hadn’t realized she had been neglecting the closest person to her. Peeta’s feelings mattered, too.

“Is this why you’re so angry with me?” Katniss asked, but it was a miracle she could even say that many words with her throat beginning to constrict.

“I’m more pissed at the fact that he’s your friend, but you aren’t excited for him. He’s my best friend. I know him. I know he wants nothing more than to celebrate, but he can’t do that because you’re whining about not wanting attention. Honestly, this is one of the best things that’s happened to him. He deserves the recognition.”

Johanna’s words reflected Katniss’s thoughts, but she hadn’t been aware of how she hadn’t showed how she felt. Of course Peeta deserved it. She had thought the same thing back at the gallery show when Caesar was gushing about Peeta’s work. Johanna didn’t know that, though. Still, she felt awful for the way she had been acting and the last thing she wanted was to ruin Peeta’s time to shine.

“Did he say all this to you?” Katniss asked.

“No, he said you were put off by people following you. He wasn’t excited about his own achievement. He didn’t have to say anything for me to figure out how much of a piss baby you were being.”

It dawned on her that her friends were talking about her behind her back, or at least Johanna was. Maybe Finnick, too, since his loyalty rested with Peeta. She knew Peeta would never say anything negative about her.

“Anything else?”

“When I talked to him, he started getting happy about it. I threw up a little in my mouth when he mentioned he was going to draw you again, though,” Johanna said with annoyance.

“Maybe he should draw you instead since you’re so irritated about it,” Katniss suggested, her words equally as biting as Johanna’s.

“I would, but he doesn’t want me. He wants you.”

“Caesar asked him to paint me again.”

It looked like Johanna was about to walk away from Katniss, or maybe she got tired of seeing her face and just needed a break before turning back. After a moment, she sighed in exasperation.

“You know…Peeta’s a great guy and a great friend,” Johanna nodded, as if she were reassuring herself instead of Katniss.

“I know,” Katniss answered. After spending months’ worth of time with him she had that idea clear in her head.

“Well, then you better start acting like you know. Don’t take him for granted. He’s too good a person to lose.”

Johanna’s last sentence left Katniss questioning the meaning behind it, though she knew what she was saying. What was the secondary significance? The pixie haired girl began to walk away from Katniss this time, but she wasn’t finished talking.

“He’s stuck in the architecture building. Might be late for lunch.”

Katniss raised an eyebrow at her even if she wouldn’t see it. “Will you be joining us?”

“With you sitting across from me? Not today. I’ve looked at your face long enough.” Johanna’s voice grew louder as she continued to get away.

Even though Katniss’s eyes stared at the back of Johanna’s head, she admitted she made a couple of good points. She  _was_  happy for him, but she didn’t find it fair that she was being painted as the ungrateful one. Maybe Peeta sent Johanna because he was now angry with her attitude, but she had to set things straight with him, even if he may be annoyed with her, too. Somehow, seeing this range of Peeta’s emotions stung Katniss. She hadn’t annoyed him with anything she’s done, not even when he pretends to be bothered when they joked around.

She texted Peeta to ask him for his location and once he told her he was in the cafeteria, she bolted towards it, ignoring how people stared at her. Once there, she searched for his blond head and found him across the room. With so many people, she was surprised none of them were paying much attention to them given the fact they were close to being celebrities. She figured the call of food was far more important than them, so Katniss was thankful for the distraction. They walked towards one another when he spotted her, but he was taken aback by her sudden embrace for a moment before he returned the gesture, securing his strong arms around her small frame while she held on tightly to him and buried her face in his chest.

“I need to talk to you,” she said when she had the courage to look at him.

She led him out of the rowdy room, holding onto his hand and dreading letting him go, into the quaint ambience of the outside dining area where birds could be heard singing. At least there, they wouldn’t be interrupted.

Katniss was able to find her voice after a minute and was finally able to face him. “I’m so sorry, Peeta.”

“For what?” Confusion laced his voice, which made it soften. She didn’t know how he found the strength to want to comfort her.

“For taking away the excitement from what happened,” Katniss explained. “I’ve been selfish, making it about me when it’s about you and your talent.”

She expected for him to be angry with her—she had gotten that idea from Johanna—but he didn’t look the slightest bit upset.

“No, you haven’t,” he stated. “You’re uncomfortable with people following you. That’s a pretty legitimate reaction to me.”

When he said it like that—justified her feelings—she didn’t feel like such a shitty friend. However, this wasn’t entirely the case.

“Still…I haven’t been very supportive about you being recognized by Caesar. You were on national television. That’s a pretty big deal, Peeta.”

He took a moment to process what she was saying. Maybe he was starting to see what she saw, or acknowledge what he already knew.

“Are you happy about it?”

Katniss slumped her shoulders in disbelief. “Of  _course_  I’m happy about it. I’m excited for you! You deserve the attention and exposure plus more!”

There was that shy smile on his lips again, the one that made Katniss’s stomach flutter with butterflies and made her heart swell.

“That means a lot, Katniss.” He was so sincere about it, but Katniss didn’t know how so much goodness existed in a single person. Was Peeta even capable of feeling bitterness towards someone else? She knew she would have felt antagonistic with someone if she was treated the way Katniss treated Peeta. Yet here he was forgiving her and even being modest about it. No wonder Johanna was so peeved with her. She really didn’t deserve him as a friend.

She hugged him again, her fingers holding on to the back of his shirt as she pressed the side of her face against his chest. It was always soothing to hear his heartbeat drum against her ear. The only thing that rivaled it was how his arms felt around her.

“It’s a great opportunity for you to be known, too,” she added, her voice a bit softer.

“True. It’s good to make connections…and money,” Peeta added.

“That’s right.” She had forgotten Caesar actually paid Peeta for his painting. “Especially if you have people from the Capitol commissioning you.”

“I mean, Caesar was generous with his payment. With two more of those, I could pay for a semester’s tuition.”

Katniss’s eyes widened at Peeta’s words. She felt rude asking him for the exact amount of money so she kept the question to herself, but she still felt curious.

“You say it’s generosity. I think it’s fairness,” she said.

Peeta shook his head. “I didn’t even think my art was worth so much. They’re just paintings.”

“You spent time and effort in your pieces in addition to paint. I think it’s more than well deserved for someone to pay you for your talent.” There was no way Peeta was going to undermine how valuable his skill was and Katniss would not allow him to do so.

Her words seemed to bring a smile to his face. “Who knew my little hobby would go such a long way?”

“I think it depends on how far you want to take it,” Katniss answered.

Peeta shrugged. “I guess for now it would be like a side job, or something along those lines. That is, if people want to commission me.”

“Maybe Caesar has friends who want beautiful art.”

“Maybe…but I don’t want to get my hopes up yet. People may not be interested.”

Katniss’s mouth gaped open at what he said. “Peeta, I’m certain there’s people that would buy your art.”

“How are you so sure about that?” he raised an eyebrow at her.

“You’ve just come out in the news and there’s already people swarming you,” Katniss pointed out.

“Did Johanna tell you about it?”

“Yes, and you don’t know how much I want to kick all of their asses for getting in your face. Crowds are awful,” Katniss frowned as she crossed her arms.

“Hm, you have a point. But who wants to buy paintings besides older people? Would you buy a painting?” Peeta asked.

Katniss nodded. “I’d request you to draw someone…like a book character.”

“ _Of course_  you would,” Peeta said teasingly. “Like Parker from  _Game of Survival_?”

“And Kohl…she’s an archer.” Even though she didn’t like it when people poked fun at her, Peeta’s knowing expression almost cracked her pout. Almost.

“I wouldn’t charge so much for something like fanart, though,” Peeta laughed.

“Then, don’t. College students would probably like their own Peeta piece…even if I’m not too keen on sharing,” Katniss smirked.

Peeta snorted at the face she made. “Katniss Everdeen,  _possessive_?”

“Me?  _Never_.”

Relief washed over Katniss when she felt the resolution to her issue. Peeta wasn’t mad at her and she had even encouraged him to open up commissions to the general public. The rest of the day went on as it usually did, with the addition of people coming up to him and even asking for autographs. Katniss swore they were exaggerating with how much they were viewing her and Peeta, but she didn’t want to be negative about it anymore. She didn’t want to ruin the experience for Peeta.

On the drive back to their apartments, Peeta brought up his phone call with Caesar and his request for another painting of Katniss.

“Does he want something in specific?” she asked.

“He let me have full reign on it,” Peeta answered. “So really anything I want would be alright with him. He just wants for you to be in it, with some kind of fire somewhere.”

“We’ll think of something,” Katniss said as she began to think.

“One more thing, though. He wants for me to bring up the painting to the Capitol.”

Somehow, Katniss felt suspicious of the arrangement. “That’s a really long trip to make to just drop off a painting.”

“Well…that’s not the only thing he asked me to do.” She felt an explanation coming on so she prompted him to continue. “He wants to interview me…and he wants you to come with me.”

It took all of Katniss’s concentration not to crash into the car in front of her. Did she hear him correctly?

“Why me, though?”

Peeta’s expression spelt out ‘Really?’ to Katniss as if it were obvious. And it should have been. And it was. But Katniss didn’t want to process what he said. Then, she remembered this was Peeta’s opportunity and she didn’t want to be the one to dampen it for him.

“Okay…I’ll go with you.”

“Are you sure? You don’t have to feel obligated to go.”

Katniss managed to give him a half smile. “I want to go with you.” The truth was that she was being honest about it and she really did want to go just because she would be with him. If she had been invited to go alone, she would have declined, but in the company of Peeta, everything was always better. Far more relaxing, too.

“I’ll let him know then,” Peeta said with a smile.

Somehow, seeing him happy filled her with joy, and then, Katniss knew she had made the right decision.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had forgotten I’d written this until I was pondering on how their trip to the Capitol would turn out. Hopefully, I was able to keep Johanna in character. I absolutely love her and she’s so blunt and brash and so ‘fuck-you’. 
> 
> Also, did you guys catch that thing I did? That Game of Survival thing? And that thing with the spoof names Parker and Kohl? I had to keep Parker because it made me laugh and I suggest putting his and Peeta’s names together since I tried to keep his and Katniss’s spoof names consistent with the same first letters and all. I don’t mean kohl as in the make-up, but rather kohlrabi, which is part of the cabbage family. I did, in fact, research vegetables that started with the letter K. 
> 
> I don’t want to make it sound like ‘Ohmg, Peeta is overrated with his art’, but no, you don’t get it, he is that good. I wish I could commission him. (I wish I could draw what I imagine he’d paint, but I am but an amateur artist, unfortunately, lacking the skill he possesses. But it’s okay to dream, right?) Let me know what you think!


	7. Part 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is +7k words long!! I’ve received a lot of feedback for the first few parts and I’m glad that you all are enjoying this seemingly out of control story. Thank you to everyone that has supported this, whether it’s by liking or reblogging. I hope that you all enjoy this new bit!
> 
> Disclaimer: The Hunger Games trilogy belongs to Suzanne Collins. I just use her characters as barbie dolls to play with and write stories about them.

The blurred image of rushing trees outside the window had entertained Katniss for a couple of minutes before she felt woozy. She thought she’d been used to watching trees and other types of greenery pass by as she and Peeta drove to school, but this new speed the train brought proved her wrong. She and Peeta were headed to the Capitol for their interview with Caesar Flickerman and she was certain this was also a contributor to her lightheadedness. She decided to focus on Peeta, who sat beside her sketching quietly. She welcomed the peaceful moment because her companion always had that look of concentration on his face as he undoubtedly immersed himself in the vision present in his mind. There seemed to be a world that only he could see and he presented it beautifully through his artwork.

They weren’t alone on their trip, though, much to Katniss’s chagrin. Amongst the phone calls they had received after the news that they had been in touch with Caesar, one of his colleagues had contacted them about being their escort and would help them with getting ready for the interview. Effie Trinket had gone on and on about how fabulous it would all be, and how this trip coincided with her return to the Capitol after spending some time in District 12 with her boyfriend, who she was bringing along. Katniss would have cared less about this woman’s personal affairs if it hadn’t involved her dear uncle Haymitch. He was such a recluse that she wondered how he talked to people, but it turned out he could be social if he wanted to, or if he was coaxed into those situations. Katniss wrinkled her nose when Effie said she and Haymitch were dating because there was no way her uncle—so curt, unruly, and insufferable—could charm someone as bubbly and enthusiastic as Effie. Yet there was little she could do to protest their company. Effie had a job to do and Haymitch did know a thing or two about the Capitol himself after going back and forth for his involvement with the military.  It’s funny how small the world truly was.

It’s not that she was embarrassed of her uncle (although, she held a different opinion about his drinking problem), but he and Katniss had the tendency to argue and she could be quite aggressive with him when he pushed her buttons. It was the complete opposite with Peeta who made her feel relaxed. She hadn’t put those two sets of emotions together, at least not in a long time, so she worried about coming off as hostile to Peeta. For now, Haymitch and Effie had left them alone and she didn’t even want to wonder what those two were up to.

Surprisingly, Peeta and Haymitch got along, or at least they could hold a decent conversation unlike when Katniss talked to her uncle. His talent for speaking and using the correct words people wanted to hear always impressed her because it was just talking, but there was something about Peeta that made everything he said believable and soothing.

Katniss was curious to see what Peeta was sketching, but she thought against stealing a peek since she didn’t want to disrupt his concentration. Instead, she studied his face and noticed how long and blond his eyelashes were, casting shadows over his eyes as he blinked. She wondered how they didn’t tangle together or if he ever realized how thick they were.

There was a moment where he lost his focus and looked up to meet her eyes. How long had she been staring at him? Two minutes? Two hours? Regardless of the time, Katniss felt heat rush to her face as she turned away, fighting a smile.

“What were you looking at?” Peeta asked.

“Your eyelashes…I was wondering what they’ll look like with all the make-up they’ll put on you.” She could have been honest and told him how pretty she thought they looked, but she couldn’t let him know that. However, she wasn’t lying when she mentioned the make-up.

Effie had mentioned they would have a stylist and a prep team to get them ready, which meant having their hair and make-up done in addition to having wardrobe they would provide. Katniss thought it was a waste of time and money, but it was the Capitol and they wanted for everyone to be full of glitter and shine.

Peeta chuckled. “Hopefully, we’re able to keep our faces. Have you seen what they look like?”

Katniss laughed at his implication. “They do look ridiculous with so many alterations they get done.”

“I guess having make-up on would be relatively harmless and normal.” Peeta made a good point, but she wondered if they could object to anything they didn’t agree with or if they had to go with whatever their prep team proposed.

They heard a shift from the door and Effie came through with a folder in her hand. “Alright, children. Let’s work on your interview. I have a list of questions Caesar may ask you, though know he won’t make them all in one night. You have to be prepared to answer the ones he decides to give you, and he may even make some up on the spot.”

Katniss’s talents did not include public speaking. Just thinking about being in front of people made her nervous, and having cameras zoom in on her face set off a new kind of anxiety she didn’t recognize. Even if she tried to convince herself that it would be fine because she was doing this for Peeta, she couldn’t help feel her stomach curl and stir. Effie would be helping them work on their answers and give them a mock interview, but even with the practice, she was afraid she would mess up. She wondered how Peeta could do these kinds of things without feeling nervous. He was confident and sure of himself when addressing people, making him quite popular amongst different groups at their university.

She didn’t know what she expected from the set of questions Effie had, but at least they weren’t as difficult to answer as she had thought. They were more or less basic, asking where they came from and what they were studying; what plans they have for the future; what they do on their spare time; how Peeta developed his talent and how he found inspiration for his fiery piece. Perhaps it was because they were students and not celebrities, but if they were going to get asked those sorts of things, then she didn’t feel she should worry so much about what to answer. They spent around three hours working on them, though, and Effie gave them advice on how to answer, which gave Katniss the impression that she and Peeta had to be extremely polite and mind their manners. It was all about manners with her.

That led to their escort evaluating the way they walked and moved, too. Effie sent Peeta to Haymitch so she and Katniss could work on her etiquette, and even though it pained Katniss to watch him leave them alone, at least he wouldn’t see how humiliating this type of training was. There were a lot of things Katniss couldn’t predict, but she was sure that this whole ordeal was made so she wouldn’t have the slightest ounce of peace of mind. It would have helped if Effie hadn’t been such a drama queen about every little thing they did, but Katniss tried to keep her cool, taking deep breaths and thinking about other things besides walking out of the room or ripping Effie’s papers in half to shut her up. She was not only here to help Peeta, but she was also Haymitch’s girlfriend and the last thing Katniss needed was to upset her.

“You must walk like a lady, Katniss,” Effie said for the third time after Katniss walked from one end of the train cart to the other.

“Will they even notice if I miss a couple of steps?” Katniss asked with slight irritation in her voice.

“Of course they will. They will notice every two steps, every step, every half-step. Your posture, your strut. It’s all important.”

Katniss did her best to walk the way Effie instructed and once she was satisfied, she had her practice with a pair of heels. They were too tall, too thin, and they pinched her toes, so Katniss had a difficult time adjusting to them and relied on holding on to one of the seats. She wondered if there was any way she could use her own shoes, but she doubted that would be negotiable. Effie took her hand and helped steady her, and Katniss was able to practice for a couple of rounds before she walked on her own with the monstrous heels.

“Does Peeta have to worry about any of this?” Katniss asked.

“That’s why I shooed him away. Haymitch is helping him,” Effie said as she looked over Katniss. “Pick up your chin and square your shoulders; you’re slumping.”

Katniss was not about to hear her say these things more than once so she tried learning quickly. She had to give her credit, though, for taking her job seriously.

“Why my uncle though?”

Effie gave her a mischievous smile. “Well, I have to put him to use, too. We can’t have him just drinking up the whole bar without earning it first.” She gave Katniss another look and bit her lip. “Hm, maybe if I put a book on your head, that would help you…”

With a forced smile on her lips, Katniss stood as straight as she could, sticking out her chest to prove she was doing everything Effie said. “Do we really need to use a book, Effie? I’m learning a lot from your instructions.”

“I’m not entirely pleased with this,” Effie pouted. “We’ll reach the Capitol by tomorrow so we can pick up on this again in the hotel. And work on the way you answer questions.”

The dismissal turned Katniss’s forced smile into a genuine grin. Maybe if she hurried, she’d still catch Peeta with her uncle.

Her prediction about Haymitch being at the bar was correct, but Peeta wasn’t with him, which disappointed her. She was about to walk back when her uncle called her to join him for a drink.

“You know I’m not old enough to drink,” she said.

“Then get some lemonade or something,” Haymitch responded, as if it were the logical thing to do.

“Where’s Peeta?”

“Said he’d go to his room. I have a vague feeling he went looking for you, though.”

If there was anything Katniss would order, it’d be another drink for her uncle so he’d leave her alone to find Peeta. However, he was in a rather talkative mood, which meant he was tipsy enough to be conscious and sober yet also enough to lose some of his inhibitions. She sat down on a stool next to him to humor him.

“How’d you manage to land that one?” Haymitch asked before taking a sip from his drink.

Katniss looked at him with confusion, not understanding what he really meant.

Her uncle rolled his eyes before speaking again. “You won’t even talk to a wall, much less people. Yet your friend is someone like him. He talks a lot.”

“Perhaps it was my sunny personality,” she answered sarcastically.

Haymitch snorted and shook his head. “Or you threatened to kill him.”

Katniss glared at him, feeling the annoyance build up in her body. “Let’s say I did. What did  _you_  do to convince Effie? Threatened to throw her off a bridge? Cut off her hair?”

“You’d be amazed what I can do while sober,” he said, though he didn’t sound very mocking about it.

After a moment, Katniss sighed and decided to keep some peace since Peeta was on her mind. “We’re childhood classmates. Started talking to one another a few months ago, though. Been friends since.” She took Haymitch’s glass and set it beside her—just enough to keep Haymitch from reaching—deciding to test out just how skilled he was without his liquor. “Your turn.”

Haymitch huffed out a breath through his nose in attempts to relax. “She’s a reporter in charge of District 12 and then transfers the news to the Capitol. There’s been special editions for veterans and we talked. Took her out on a few dates. Now, we’re here.”

“I took you for a hermit,” Katniss chuckled.

“Who says I’m not? Just because I go out in public doesn’t mean I don’t want to go back to my house,” Haymitch said with a scowl. “I took you for a misanthrope.”

“Well, you’re not too far off. I make exceptions, though.”

“Like the boy?” Haymitch asked, a hint of a smirk on his lips.

Katniss took a deep breath as she tried to keep her irritation at bay. What was he getting at? “Yeah, like him.”

“I don’t know how you did it, though. You have the charm of a squirrel that’s been run over,” Haymitch snorted.

“Probably learnt from you since we’re related,” Katniss bit back. There was enough venom in her words to paralyze a person, but she knew Haymitch couldn’t be fazed by them. In part, it was true that she learnt from him to toughen up and have thick skin. His words didn’t usually hurt her and she noticed hers didn’t either. Maybe this was why she didn’t like making friends.

“How’s the interview prep going?” Haymitch tried reaching for his glass, but Katniss pushed it farther away.

“I’m putting my charm to use,” Katniss deadpanned.

Haymitch got up and took a bottle from the other side of the counter. The bartender had gone off and left him, which was a mistake really. “Too bad because in the Capitol, you have to make people like you. With your attitude, you’re not off to a real good start, sweetheart. And if you want for the interview to go well for Peeta, you’re going to have to try  _a lot_  harder to not come off as roadkill.”

Now that wasn’t fair! Katniss knew this wasn’t her forte, but it’s not like she wasn’t trying, either.

“Then give me some suggestions.”

Haymitch managed to open the bottle—it was one of those kinds where the aluminum is the only barrier between the liquor and its seeker—and took a swig from it. “Since you can’t borrow charisma from your friend and I can’t give you mine, then find an angle you can use. You’re a young college student. You’re a painter’s muse. Work with it.”

How could she ‘work with’ two details? Effie had said the interview would last anywhere from five to ten minutes, depending on how it progressed and how long Caesar talked, and that terrified Katniss. She gave Haymitch his glass back before hopping off her stool and going to search for Peeta. She found him in his room, looking over the paintings he had brought with him from his apartment. He kept Caesar’s painting in a different room since it was a lot bigger than the rest, which kept prying eyes away from it, including Katniss’s. Peeta wasn’t allowing her to see the final piece, even though she posed for him.

The challenge to make a new painting for Peeta’s commissioner was difficult because he let Peeta decide on what would go on the canvas. After a few days of thinking, Katniss had gotten an idea when the archery shooting range opened up at the gym. Maybe it wasn’t something Peeta would consider, but she would feel the utmost comfortable in her natural habitat. She was glad when Peeta agreed to the idea and decided this time to take pictures of her rather than relying on memory. Katniss knew he would be painting her with a bow and arrow, but the rest of the piece was hard for her to put together. He could do anything, really.

The paintings she could see, however, were in Peeta’s room, carefully stacked against each other, separated by a delicate material provided by the Capitol. He had mentioned to Caesar about his other works and the talk show host was more than happy to have him bring them along. He had friends that showed interest ever since he talked about Peeta and his art. It made Katniss smile knowing that people were supporting Peeta. She had never seen something like this happen, but she was glad to witness it.

“You’re lucky you don’t have to deal with Effie,” she sighed as she took a seat on Peeta’s bed.

“Brutal etiquette classes?” Peeta asked.

“Who knew coordination involved having to think about how you walked?” Katniss took one of the pillows and hugged it. It wasn’t as warm as Peeta, but she’d make do for now.

“I can switch with you, if you want. Your uncle seems to know what he’s doing,” Peeta offered.

Katniss gave him a skeptical look. “Thanks. I just talked to him, though. Gave me a proper pep talk.”

“What’d he say?”

She told him about Haymitch’s advice and what he thought about her and Peeta listened intently. As much as she tried to steer clear of any complaints, her tone gave away that she was evidently bothered by her being in front of a camera.

“I’m not very good at talking to people,” she said with a defeated sigh.

Peeta sat beside her, not being able to hold back a smile. “You’re good at talking to me, though.”

“Yeah, but you’re different.”

“How am I different?”

Katniss tried to think of something that set Peeta apart from everyone else, but she wasn’t sure if she could convey it with just words. All this time, he had been worried about not being able to do her justice when she was the one that struggled to do that very thing now. “Well, you’re…you.”

He rolled his eyes good-naturedly. “That’s very insightful, Katniss.”

She couldn’t help chuckle at his sarcasm. “You know what I mean!”

“I do and that’s why we’re friends!” As he spoke, he took the tip of her braid and flung it over her back playfully. He seemed to recognize something then. “What if we do that? Play off each other’s banter?”

Katniss tried chewing the idea. “How, though? We’d be talking to Caesar.”

“Yes, but we could also fill in things for one another.”

She tossed him the pillow she had clung to. “That’s not banter, Peeta!”

He set the pillow aside and took her hands in his. “Follow me with this. Whenever you and I talk about the same thing, you light up at some point. I’ve noticed this today, actually. Your uncle gave us a weird look when you started to laugh about something.”

“Did he mention it when he was helping you?” Katniss asked with an arched eyebrow.

“He asked me if you were sick and mentioned you never laugh unless you have a fever,” Peeta chuckled.

“To be fair…he’s right.”

“Then, worst case scenario: we induce a fever for you so you can be giggly with Caesar,” Peeta shrugged, as if doing such a thing could be that easy.

Katniss knew that wouldn’t be necessary. She more or less understood what Peeta said and tried to relax about the subject.  

The following morning brought her some more comfort as she and Peeta did what he suggested, in addition to her using Haymitch’s advice. After practicing their interview several times with Effie, she brought in Haymitch to rehearse with them and Katniss tried her best not to be sarcastic while answering him, but there was only so much she could take and realized Caesar could not be as intolerable as her uncle.

* * *

**

Arriving at the Capitol gave her different types of shock, not just the typical one with anxiety. From what she could see through the train’s windows, there were people waiting outside dressed in all sorts of colorful clothing. They were all ridiculous and exaggerated, and after seeing Effie with her voluminous wig and hat, she looked relatively normal, professional even, with her blazer and pencil skirt.

The culture shock set in when she and Peeta stepped off the train and took in the new world they’d been exposed to. District 12 was calm and peaceful with an abundance of nature trails and the woods to provide a tranquil environment. The Capitol, on the other hand, was flashy, full of lights, skyscrapers, billboards, and pollution. It was surprising to see so much artificial color in the sky that Katniss wondered where the energy even came from to power everything. She and Peeta were stunned and looked up to observe the buildings surrounding them. She could see faces of actors and models on advertisements, and a giant screen with Caesar’s face on it promoting his show.

There was a flash of a camera at first to the right of Katniss’s line of sight, followed by a dozen more and at some point, she had to keep her eyes closed in order to regain her focus. There were screams coming from the people that had gathered around the train station, and then it clicked for Katniss that the people weren’t waiting to board the train they had come in, but rather they were waiting to see them and they somehow knew their names because they were screaming them out. It was worse than her classmates back in the university, but at least she had Peeta to guide her away from these people. Effie prompted them to follow her and Katniss hadn’t even noticed she had latched onto Peeta’s hand until he gave hers a squeeze so she could walk with him. She didn’t let him go until they were boarded onto a large white vehicle, but even then, she sat beside him and they were both able to see through the window the eccentricity of the Capitol. Katniss didn’t envy them one bit; she was not a fan of so much light or ostentation. She wondered if Peeta thought differently since he was more open to new environments.

The hotel in which they would be staying was a tall building with countless stories, and Katniss wondered if it had an end to it. The staff wasn’t as colorful as the pedestrians on the outside world, and instead they looked serious and a bit emotionless. For one thing, she was glad about that because she didn’t think she could tolerate the freak show with the abrasive color schemes that were a sight for sore eyes. Once checked in, they were brought up to their room, which was a large suite with three rooms, a living room, a dining room, a kitchen, and a balcony. This could be a house back in her district for all she knew. Because Caesar had invited them, he would be paying for the expenses, even if Peeta had protested against it. It was strange to Katniss how someone could go out of their way to accommodate them when they hardly knew each other, but something good was happening to Peeta so she would take it for all it was worth.  

They still had a couple of hours before their prep teams arrived, so Effie drilled Katniss and Peeta again about their etiquette and answers they would give to Caesar. After covering the same things multiple times, Katniss started to feel confident, but she still didn’t think she could be as self-assured as Peeta.

If Katniss had thought Effie was odd, their prep teams proved that there could be higher levels of strangeness plus more. She had never met someone who could gush and talk so quickly and excitedly as the six people that walked in, speaking to Effie about this and that and things Katniss didn’t understand or care about. It hadn’t been five minutes since the teams’ arrival and she was already getting a headache. Effie introduced Peeta and her to their prep teams and they praised Peeta for his work of art that had, apparently, gotten the Capitol in such a frenzy to know who this talented artist was and why Caesar Flickerman, of all people, was so interested in him and his muse. They looked at Katniss and touched her hair, face, arms, and other places she couldn’t even keep track of due to the commotion these people were making about how exotic and different and beautiful she was. She had thought there was nothing appealing about her; she didn’t know how to be sexy or charming or even coquettish, so there was no point in pondering over how attractive she could be. With so many voices saying she was pretty, gorgeous, stunning, she believed it less. Compliments were supposed to be a one-time thing, weren’t they? The short compliment battles she and Peeta had were different. They were aggressive and competitive and they said the comments in a sort of defying manner, being more of a battle than a compliment. Whoever blushed or laughed first lost and Katniss almost always won. Those were fun because Peeta and her knew how that game worked. Even if they did play it like a game, Katniss usually disguised her comments with actual compliments she was too shy to give Peeta on a normal occasion. The somewhat empty compliments she received from the prep teams weren’t part of the little game they played, though, so she couldn’t take them very seriously.

Being separated from Peeta and brought into different rooms made her feel uneasy, but they couldn’t be kept together. Their procedures weren’t the same and the prep teams had to focus on their assigned person. Katniss suspected this was also to keep them from getting distracted so they could do their jobs properly. Surely, she wouldn’t need so many people getting her ready, but Katniss was proven wrong when her team got to work on different tasks. One prepared a tub full of lotions and creams and other perfumed concoctions while the other two rid her of her body hair. It was painful and a bit invasive, but Katniss couldn’t really object. When it came time to get her into the tub, she felt nervous about being nude in front of her team, but they wasted no time in removing her robe and leaving her naked momentarily before receiving help to soak into the tub. At first, the flurry of flowery-smelling chemicals stung her tender skin, but afterwards, she felt the soothing sensation they were supposed to have on her.

As the three worked—Flavius, Venia, and Octavia—they all talked to one another, occasionally asking Katniss questions before getting back to their conversation. They were excited because they would get to be backstage in Caesar’s studio while Katniss and Peeta had their interview with him, and they would be able to go to parties and more events with more celebrities, and  _how exciting_  all that would be. Was Peeta suffering the same way she was or was he tolerating it better?

“What’s it like to be a painter’s muse?” Octavia asked Katniss as she worked on her nails. She had made a face when she saw how short Katniss’s nails were and mentioned she didn’t have much to work with so she made it her mission to give her long, beautiful nails even if they would be fake.

“I’m sure it must feel flattering!” Venia answered for her. “Does he ask you to pose for him for  _other_  types of artwork?” She applied a type of foundation that felt cool against Katniss’s face.

Katniss thought of the question as just curiosity, but Venia’s tone was a bit implicative of something she couldn’t figure out and then she became more confused when Flavius and Octavia slapped Venia’s arm playfully, telling her that was a  _private_  question. The giggle fit that followed added to Katniss’s confusion.  

Given the fact she’d only posed for Peeta once, it wasn’t much of a fantastic experience the way they were all expecting, but at least he let her decide where she wanted to pose. It sounded so simple, though, and these people were so excited. Would it crush them if she gave them the honest truth, or would it satisfy them if she gave a vague yet inflated answer? These people didn’t know Katniss and Peeta. The less they knew, the better for them.

“Well, Peeta makes it a priority to make me feel very comfortable is all I can say,” she shrugged, which wasn’t far from the truth if she thought about it.

That was enough of an answer for them and they continued on with another topic Katniss didn’t bother following. It was difficult to zone out, but she found a way to distract herself by looking at the room she was staying in. She had been guided to sit on a cushioned chair near the window so the illumination of the light coming from it lit up the room splendidly. The colorful lights that came through it were muted enough to not bother Katniss.

It felt like hours had gone by because she was feeling restless and irritated, but once her prep team stepped back to admire their work, she was allowed to stand so she could look at herself. If she complained that they were obnoxious, they made up for that with their ability to transform a person into an ethereal creature because that’s what they did with her. Her hair was adorned into an intricate bun woven with braids; her face was made up with a soft and sweet palette of orange, red, and pink eye shadow and powder, but the false eyelashes gave her eyes more volume and even made them look bigger; and despite the false nails, they looked delicate and elegant with the red nail polish and studded crystals over them. She had never had this type of treatment before. She not only looked otherworldly, but she even looked pretty. Perhaps that was the Capitol effect.  

She had been told her stylist, Cinna, would be bringing her dress and other accessories, and she was about to ask for him when a knock on the door answered her thoughts. It opened when her prep team gave the okay to enter and a dark-haired man with gold eyeliner walked in, a dress bag slung over his left shoulder and a large rectangular chest held by his right arm. He set his things down and introduced himself to Katniss before dismissing the excited prep team.

“You two have been making quite a commotion,” he said with a smile.

“Really, it’s all Peeta’s talent. I just so happen to be in the painting,” she answered.

“He must have had a good reason to pick you. Artists take inspiration from the world around them,” Cinna pointed out. He tugged on Katniss’s bun and she felt what must have been a bobby pin slip through her hair.

“He’s a creative person. I don’t think there is anything he can’t put on a canvas.”

Cinna opened the chest he brought and took out five boxes of different sizes before placing them on the chair. He handed one of the smaller boxes to Katniss before speaking.

“Not everyone chooses to play with fire, though. Have you wondered why he decided to have you surrounded by it?”

Katniss wasn’t sure what to expect when she opened the box, but underwear certainly wasn’t it. Of course, the Capitol had thought of everything to provide for her, and surely, Peeta was receiving the same type of treatment. She wondered if he also received a similar box. Would they know he preferred boxers over briefs? The only reason she knew that was because they had gone grocery shopping together so often that in one of their trips, he mentioned he wanted to buy a new pack and she’d accompanied him. Somehow, it hadn’t been discomforting to see the pictures of men’s groins on the labels of the plastic bags and she hadn’t thought of anything in particular when she was with Peeta, even giving her own opinion about what to get. The reverse hadn’t happened, where he’d accompany her to buy her own underwear. She knew she shouldn’t feel self-conscious, but having Peeta know she wore panties didn’t sit too well with her. He probably didn’t care, but she wasn’t ready for that type of experience just yet. It felt a bit ridiculous since she knew what type of underwear he wore and he hadn’t even so much as blushed when she found out.

“No…I assumed he pictured something in his mind and just went for it,” Katniss answered when she was able to find her voice again.

While she changed into her undergarments in the bathroom, Cinna took care of opening the rest of the boxes and taking out their contents, arranging her shoes beside the chair’s leg, and the jewelry she would be wearing on the desk top. He’d taken the dress out of its bag and unzipped it, ready to help slip it on Katniss when she walked out. All the while, they had continued their conversation and she found it so easy to talk to him, almost as easy as it was to talk to Peeta. Katniss felt like she could trust him. Maybe it was his unassuming attitude or his genuine smile, but she didn’t feel like she had to force herself to speak to him.

“I don’t think we should let that inspiration go to waste,” Cinna said as he zipped up her dress. “Hopefully, he doesn’t mind if I borrowed his idea.”

Katniss gave him a curious look. “Will the dress light up?”

“Only if you spin around. Caesar makes a point of asking his female guests to twirl for him. This will definitely make an impression.”

There was a sense of danger coming from the dress and Katniss felt rude for wanting to remove the beautiful red gown she had on. “Is it real fire?”

“No, it’s synthetic. It’ll look real, but that’s the point. It’ll match Peeta’s art with you being on fire.” Cinna’s words were reassuring and helped calm Katniss down, if only for a moment.

With the accessories in place, Katniss could see the sparkle of the earrings and the necklace when light bounced off the jewels while her bracelets looked like delicate flames surrounding her wrists. He helped her with her shoes, which were not as tall as the pair Effie had lent her to practice with on the train, and her look was complete. Despite this, she began to feel anxious, as if she hadn’t prepared enough. The time for the interview was approaching fast and the fact that she was ready to go didn’t make it any easier to process.

“I’m nervous,” she said as Cinna smoothened out her dress.

“Have you ever been interviewed before?” he asked.

“Not on live television. I don’t feel as confident as Peeta does. We’ve talked about what to do in case I freeze, but I don’t feel like it’s enough.”

Cinna pursed his lips in thought. “Why not keep your focus on something else? The cameras can be distracting, but if you look at someone else in the crowd, that would certainly help you.”

Katniss looked at him and thought of something. “Will you be in the crowd?”

With a smile, he nodded and caught on to her idea. “You can find me and pretend you’re talking to me. Pretend you’re answering my questions.”

“Hopefully, it’ll be that easy.”

“Is there anything you and Peeta do that helps comfort you?”

Katniss thought about it for a moment before remembering how she had held on to him as they left the train station. “I usually hold his hand and that helps me.”

Cinna placed individual orange and red crystals on Katniss’s arms and cheek. “Okay, so you have two options to choose from. Focus on either Peeta or me. Caesar won’t let you flounder around, either. Trust me, you’ll be fine and you’ll even enjoy yourself.”

Katniss wanted to believe him. If what he said was true and she could put her focus on these two people, then she was sure the interview would turn out fine. She would have Peeta by her side and he wouldn’t let her choke. Cinna would be in the crowd, surely cheering for her and giving her reassuring looks. Somehow, the pressure to perform well was slowly fading. She would have fun with it.

When she walked out of the room with Cinna, the others were already in the living room waiting for her. Katniss recognized the back of Peeta’s head—he was the only blond in the room—but he looked transformed. He wore a striking black suit with a red tie and cuffs, and his hair was combed back, looking shiny and flawless. They had joked about him getting made-up, but Katniss didn’t see anything on his face other than a bit of powder, which was probably customary for people who appeared on television to wear anyway. She wondered if he, too, would be lit on fire if he spun or did something with his sleeves.

“Look at you, Girl on Fire,” he said as he approached her.

She raised an eyebrow at him, although what she felt was amusement instead of annoyance at his teasing. “We need to give you a nickname, too.”

“I thought it was ‘The Artist’.”

“No, it needs to be a mouthful like mine.”

“Think about it on the drive over to the studio. We have to go already,” Haymitch interrupted.

“Why don’t you stay behind, uncle Haymitch? There’s a bar here,” Katniss suggested, hoping he’d listen to her, but knowing he wouldn’t.

“And pass up the refreshments over at the studio? That’s a trip I  _have_  to make, sweetheart.”

Katniss rolled her eyes at him, but the irritation was short-lived. Effie had a planner in her hand and she was marking something off her list before telling everyone that they needed to make their way down in order to head to the studio. A jumpy sensation settled in Katniss’s stomach, but Peeta offered her his arm and she slipped hers under his willingly. Their stylists and prep teams would be accompanying them for any last-minute adjustments, but at least they weren’t going in the same car as Peeta and her. She didn’t think she could handle listening to them talk about nonsense for another minute.

Even with the late afternoon sun, the city looked different from the time they arrived earlier in the morning. It was a sort of transition stage before the night life arrived and Katniss could only imagine what it was like. The arrival to Caesar’s studio had the same reception as the one she and Peeta received at the train station, only this time there were far more people and they were being held back by a thin transparent wall and security guards that were three steps from one another, all lined up. They couldn’t all be here to see them, could they? They weren’t even that well-known and it felt odd that they would be screaming for them. The Capitol must really be fond of artists if there was so much of a commotion already. All Katniss could really do was hold on to Peeta as they were led inside by Effie, who was all too familiar with the procedures.

They were given a printed schedule that she went over with them, which wasn’t much really. Caesar would introduce them, they would have their interview, Peeta would present his painting to Caesar, and then there would be some kind of challenge towards the end. If she had known that they were going to compete in something, she would have brought comfortable shoes with her. Sarcastic remarks aside, she really did wonder what Caesar would have them do. She and Peeta had watched a few episodes of his show to get an idea of what they were walking into, and it made sense that there would be some kind of challenge because Caesar would come up with some strange activities for his guests. Most of it was improvisation, so she wondered what would be set up for them.

The talk show host approached them a few minutes later when he spotted them and he seemed ecstatic at their presence. Compliments were thrown, small talk was made, and the tense atmosphere Katniss had sensed broke when she got familiar with Caesar and his mannerism in the short amount of time they spoke. He explained how the show worked, where they would enter from the stage and where they would take a seat near his desk, and they would have a fabulous time, he was sure of it! He reminded them to wave to the crowd and smile before he left to get ready. A small, electronic box was attached to Peeta’s and Katniss’s hips and microphones were hooked onto the collars of their attire so they could talk through them. Touch-ups for make-up were done by their prep teams. Cheers and encouraging comments were given, though Katniss found it weird that someone would tell them to break a leg. She spotted Cinna and Portia, Peeta’s stylist, sitting in the same row together, and she felt better at the reassurance that not only was someone she knew in the crowd, but Peeta was with her. The smile on his face was the sole reminder that she had come here for him and she wouldn’t have wanted for this to happen any other way. His energy seemed to cross over to her body and the electrifying feeling of adrenaline rushed through her, as if Peeta had given her his good vibes. Of course, they were going into this as one.

The loud, jazzy tune played that signaled the show had begun and Caesar took his place as he began his opening monologue, welcoming the crowd and giving them a brief summary of what the show would contain. There was static that briefly came from Katniss’s microphone and Caesar introduced Peeta and her as his guests. The crew from back stage gave them their cue and Katniss slipped her hand into Peeta’s, holding onto him tightly before walking onto the stage and being met with the rumbling cheers of the crowd that awaited them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did you think I was going to pass up the opportunity to include the District 12 Team? By team, I don’t just mean Effie and Haymitch, but the whole styling pack. I, personally, love Hayffie, so I had to add that to this story as well. Did you also think I was going to let K and P go alone to the Capitol? ;)
> 
> I picture Caesar to be like a combination of Graham Norton, David Letterman, Jimmy Kimmel, Jimmy Fallon, and Conan O’Brien. (I watch them sometimes lol.)
> 
> I imagine the Capitol to be a mix of New York City, Las Vegas, Hollywood, and Seattle. My brother has gone and he mentioned that people dress rather eccentrically, so while writing this, I pictured them. The Capitol also gives me that casino vibe of LV, the ‘Big City’ vibe from NYC, and the star-studded atmosphere of Hollywood. I’m from a small town in southern Texas and I’ve gone to big cities like Dallas, San Antonio, and Austin. The culture shock wasn’t as great for Dallas and San Antonio, but for Austin, I was quite appalled. I’m open to liberal settings, but I was hit in the face with Austin. So I definitely feel for Katniss and Peeta since they’re from a small town and then they come to the Capitol, which is probably huge and full of lights and they’re probably bugging their eyes out.
> 
> Also, Idk about y’all, but I don’t think finding out what type of underwear your friends use is weird. I’ve gone with my best guy friend grocery shopping and he needed new underwear so I browsed with him and gave him some of my opinions. He’s never gone with me to Victoria’s Secret, but he knows what I wear and I’m fine with that. Katniss isn’t me, though, and I know she’s not the most open to sharing about her body and all that, but I think if she knew what Peeta wore, it wouldn’t be a big deal. Maybe someday, he’ll find out what she wears. ;) As for the compliment battle, if you haven’t seen a video of that from celebrities on youtube, you haven’t lived. The cast of Love, Simon did one and it was great. Usually, the battles I have with friends aren’t written tweets; we just say things like “You’re cute.” “Your FACE is cute.” “Hey, BITCH, I love YOU.” Stupid shit like that in a very aggressive tone. P and K wouldn’t swear at each other, I can’t picture either of them calling each other bitch, but maybe little shit sometimes. I have been listening to the comments about hotel shenanigans and believe me, I will get to that! We just have to get through the next part, which is their interview. I will try to update next weekend. School is starting this Monday and I’m also moving into my apartment so I have a busy weekend. Fingers crossed that I can get to writing something during some of my free time. Let me know what you think!


	8. Part 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sooo I started a new semester of university at a new school and that's exciting! I also moved into a nice apartment and my roommates are pretty neat and nice. I like my experience so far, and I have gathered at least 10 new ideas that I would like to try with everlark for this au. This is just going to keep getting longer and I don't know until when it will end, but till then, let's follow these nerds on their journey. I've been looking forward to getting to this part for a whole month! I hope it meets your expectations or at least satisfies your need for a good quality fic. Also, thank you for all the support this has been receiving! :) A bit of a warning: this contains a lot of dialogue and I tried to make it as funny and interesting as possible because it's an interview. I hope it has a good flow!
> 
> Disclaimer: The Hunger Games trilogy belongs to Suzanne Collins. I just use her characters as barbie dolls to play with and write stories about them.

For a moment, Katniss lost her sense of hearing and not even gulping saliva could clear the empty silence in her ears. Adrenaline rushed through her body, but she kept Caesar’s words to smile and wave at the front of her mind, seeing as how that was the only thing that kept her from focusing on the cameras that were following her and Peeta. Her feet seemed to work—at least, she thought so or else Peeta would have been dragging her—and she was able to walk alongside her companion up the couple of steps that led to the couch where guests sat beside Caesar Flickerman.

The feeling of blood pumping through her veins and a loud thumping in her ears brought her back to the reality that was in front of her. She was facing a crowd of eccentrically dressed people who had probably never heard of her or Peeta, yet they were so excited to see them both thanks to the hype that their host had built up. There was intense clapping that came from them and at that moment, it was all Katniss could focus on until she felt a tug on her hand and drew her attention back to Peeta. He motioned to her with his eyes to pay attention to Caesar, who had apparently said something to her, but she hadn’t paid attention in the slightest and felt lost.

“…What?”

A laugh escaped from Caesar’s lips. “Looks like someone’s a little nervous.”

“He gave us a welcome,” Peeta said as he leaned towards Katniss so she could hear him.

“Oh!” A few laughs followed as Katniss caught on. “I’m…sorry. Everything is just so shiny,” she said as she finally found her voice.

“It _is_ easy to get distracted around here. We can dim the lights if it makes you feel more comfortable, dear,” Caesar offered and waved his hand to a crew on the side that must have been in charge of the lighting because they did as they were told and Katniss could feel their intensity of the heat fade.

She thanked their host for the accommodation and tried to relax, finding Cinna in the crowd as she took a few steady breaths.

“Peeta what do you think? Better for you as well?” Caesar asked.

“Yeah, I think it gives the room a more romantic vibe,” Peeta nodded as he crossed his left leg over his right knee, a gesture he usually did when he felt at ease. Katniss couldn’t figure out how he did that. Here she was with her heart pounding wildly against her chest yet he was casually sitting down as if they were having lunch in one of their apartments together.

“We can certainly aim for romantic,” Caesar agreed as he looked over his note cards, setting them down on his desk after a moment. “Now, I don’t know if you’re aware, but you two have been stirring up a buzz here. Peeta, people are so impressed by your art. You don’t know how many phone calls I’ve received regarding you and your paintings. _Especially_ , about the one featuring the lovely young woman sitting next to you.”

Katniss couldn’t help the burning sensation on her face when she heard him say those words about her and about Peeta. It had been a move of pure luck in a way, but somehow her standing on the edge of the pool had given Peeta so much inspiration that they were sitting next to the most important talk show host, and perhaps the biggest celebrity, of the Capitol and all of Panem. It had felt surreal from the moment they saw him with his flashy blue hair in the humble art gallery from District 12 University.

“That’s very flattering. I’m hoping the paintings I brought can fill people’s interests.” Peeta briefly glanced at Katniss and gave her a smile. “As for Katniss’s piece, well…I think that’s been my best work so far.”

“What inspired you to paint her in such a way? Surrounded by fire…but she was the source?” Caesar seemed genuinely curious and even excited to know Peeta’s reasoning and Katniss couldn’t deny that she felt the same. She had wondered why he had painted her of all people.

“Well, it was really simple. She’d gotten out of the swimming pool and all of a sudden, I just see water flying in multiple directions. Being my best friend, I know Katniss is a fiery person and she has a passion for the things she does. To me, it looked like she gave off sparks from the water.”

Peeta’s eyes landed on Katniss’s and she couldn’t help holding back a flattered smile. She turned to look at Caesar. “He gives me too much credit.”

“She’s too humble,” Peeta countered. “She doesn’t know the effect she can have on people.”

She raised an eyebrow in amusement. “On people, or you?”

“Both,” Peeta said after a moment of thought. “That isn’t necessarily a bad thing.”

“Of course, it isn’t,” Caesar added, giving his support to Peeta’s statement. “You’ve certainly had a _very_ positive effect here. People love you!”

Pictures of Peeta’s painting flashing on a screen caught her attention, and it displayed his perception of her setting fire to the water with the sparks that came off from her. He had truly made an extraordinary work of art. Risking sounding vain even to her own thoughts, she had to agree that there was something about her image that demanded attention.

“I assume you all haven’t seen a person on fire?” Katniss asked, being both sarcastic and teasing.

“We have, but they ended in tragedies,” Caesar pointed out. “You, however, look more alive than ever.”

“I don’t know…I think Peeta gives off more sparks than I do,” Katniss countered, looking at Peeta once again. “Don’t try to deny it.”

“I mean, it’s not like people have made a painting of me or anything,” Peeta teased.

“You don’t need a painting as proof, though.” They both gave each other smiles that wouldn’t budge and stared at each other in a challenging way, both wanting to be right about the other.

“You two think so highly of one another.” Caesar interrupted the silent stare down and broke the slight tension between the two, drawing their attention to him again. A few people in the crowd chuckled at the interaction between them.

“We like giving each other a hard time sometimes,” Katniss said with a laugh.

Peeta nodded in agreement. “Trust us, it’s fun.”

Caesar shook his head with an amused grin on his face. “I’m curious. How did you two meet, exactly?”

“We’ve known each other since we were around five years old,” Peeta began. “The funny thing is that we didn’t talk to each other until after starting university.”

“We let around fourteen years pass in order to become friends,” Katniss added.

“That’s a long time! Why would you two wait so long?” Caesar asked with confusion.

“We blame the seating arrangements of the classrooms,” Katniss answered. “Our desks would never meet because of our last names.”

“It’s a good thing college doesn’t care about alphabetical order in classrooms now,” Peeta said. “Not that it matters since we don’t have a class together.”

“But we didn’t need a class to get close to each other,” Katniss pointed out, placing a hand on Peeta’s knee.

“Then how did you get closer?” Caesar asked, leaning a bit more forward against his desk.

“She asked me to give her a ride to school and that was it, that’s all we needed,” Peeta laughed. As their conversation progressed, Katniss had noticed that there had been continuous laughter that came from various parts of the audience. It was a good-natured and positive response to their replies, or at least that’s what Katniss wanted to believe. She hoped that was the case, that the audience found them humorous.

“We’ve been inseparable since.” Katniss leaned her head against Peeta’s shoulder, as if doing so would emphasize what she had just said.

“What does inseparable look like to you two?”

Katniss and Peeta gave each other a brief glance. After a moment, she answered Caesar. “We do everything together…I risk saying we’ve become too dependent on one another,” she joked.

“We’re interdependent,” Peeta clarified. “We spend a lot of time in each other’s company: cooking, exercising, studying, watching movies, traveling to the Capitol. You name it, Caesar.”

“Would you say there is something you _don’t_ do together?”

They both took a few seconds to consider their answers. “She doesn’t paint with me,” Peeta answered.

“We don’t take showers together,” Katniss added.

“Or sleep together. …That sounded indecent; I take it back,” Peeta said, getting flustered at the minor slip up. Katniss wasn’t sure how to react, but she knew that her cheeks were on fire, and not exactly the kind that was on Peeta’s painting. She heard the audience gasp, giving a few shrieks, their tones suggestive as if there was something more to what Peeta had said. He was caught in a fit of laughter, but he managed to keep it together. “We go to our own, separate apartments and sleep there,” he said for clarification.

By that point, even Caesar couldn’t keep his composure and had to succumb to the laughter that had been caused by his guests’ responses. His index finger and thumb gently pinched the central area of his forehead as he tried to keep from giggling. “If you say so.”

Katniss tried glaring at Peeta for the unexpected insinuation that they may have some sort of sexual relation together, but with all the laughter surrounding them and the fact that Peeta was actually flushed and a bit embarrassed made her soften a bit. She knew he hadn’t meant it in a way that suggested they were…doing _that_. She pushed his leg off his knee for good measure, though, and turned to look at Caesar once again, waiting for when they would continue.

“Uh-oh, your muse is a bit angry,” Caesar said, gathering his note cards as if that would cut the tension of the situation.

“She actually gave me a death glare right now,” Peeta said as he repositioned his leg on his knee. “It was kind of terrifying.”

A thought hit Katniss like a thousand volts of electricity as the realization hit her. During that same day that Peeta had gotten inspired to sketch, and eventually paint her, he had mentioned how she didn’t scare him, but now…

“I told you I’d scare you,” she teased.

“Of course, you scare me. I respect you,” Peeta pointed out.

“You had said I was as frightening as a new born kitten,” Katniss countered.

“That was before I saw you shoot at the archery range!”

Caesar gasped. “You’re an archer? How good are you?”

Katniss hadn’t expected for this topic to come up, at least not so early. “I’m alright,” she shrugged.

Peeta shook his head. “Better than alright. She was in the archery team in our high school. She’d win first place during competitions.”

“Would you say she could kill a man?” Caesar asked in a joking manner.

Peeta smiled. “Perhaps if she’d shoot him through the heart.” Katniss couldn’t figure out the feeling behind the way his lips curved upward, the way he said those words. Maybe she was reading too much into it because of what was going on, but she definitely picked up a different tone from him then.

It also dawned on her that she was receiving so much attention yet this was Peeta’s interview. Even though he was doing most of the talking, he and Caesar were talking about her and not enough about him.

“If you think that’s impressive, wait until you hear about him. Peeta’s strong,” she began. “He can lift sacks of flour that weigh more than one-hundred pounds. I’ve seen him do it back in his parents’ bakery. He lifts weights at the gym, too.” She gave him a glance before continuing. “He’s also a boxer. He was one of the best in our school. He’s won multiple belts and has had undefeated streaks. He must’ve broken some kind of record.”

This seemed to excite Caesar. “Is it safe to assume you can leave some serious damage?”

“I can, but I wouldn’t engage in a fight outside the ring,” Peeta replied. “I don’t see how violence can resolve an issue.”

Caesar nodded as he listened to his guest. “That’s quite noble of you. Not a lot of people would choose to be diplomatic.” He turned his attention to Katniss. “Have you ever tried giving it a go?” he asked.

“To fight him?” she questioned with confusion. “We argue sometimes, but not to the point where I’d want to punch him.”

“I haven’t earned that yet,” Peeta joked.

“Who says you haven’t?” Katniss asked as she crossed her arms, a smirk on her lips.

Peeta’s mouth fell open with disbelief. “What did I do?”

“I’ll tell you later,” she answered, keeping an ambiguous expression on her face. She had forgotten she’d let go of his hand until then and retook it in hers, giving his palm and fingers a light squeeze. A few members of the audience let out a groan, as if to indicate that Peeta was in serious trouble.

“You two are something else,” Caesar said as he gave them a smile Katniss couldn’t exactly describe. It was a mix of mischief and amusement and she wasn’t sure if that was a good or bad thing. “Let’s go back a bit. Peeta, your parents own a bakery?”

Peeta nodded as he spoke. “Back in District 12. My grandfather started the family business and then my father took over. Before I went to college, I would help my parents around; I learnt to bake and prepare dough and batters. I also decorated the cakes and that’s where I learnt to paint.”

Caesar’s eyebrows shot up, impressed. “That’s new. I had no idea you could use frosting as a means to learn to paint.”

“I got creative with it. My mother would scold me for it, but I liked doing all sorts of different patterns on cakes,” Peeta added.

“I would like to buy one from you some day,” Caesar said. “I know for a fact it will not be boring.”

This earned him a chuckle from Peeta. “I’d be happy to make you one.”

“Is there anything you can’t do?” Caesar asked playfully. “Katniss, you know him the best. Don’t lie to us.”

She felt pressure at the question, as if she held the correct answer and it would somehow appease Caesar. “I think he’s good at everything,” she replied. “Aside from his obvious talents, I mean.” Their host prompted her to elaborate, wanting to know more details about what her friend was like. “His cooking is delicious. He makes sure I eat because I forget sometimes.”

She heard the crowd laugh again with a few sounds of affection in a few directions.

“Even if it’s getting late and she doesn’t want to see anyone, I bring her a plate to her apartment,” Peeta explained. “Exams get hectic, and she gets stressed out.”

“You start falling asleep in random places during exam time,” Katniss pointed out.

“And you wake me up because the school couches are uncomfortable for sleeping,” Peeta added.

Thinking about it made Katniss feel warm, and the memories of catching Peeta laying down half asleep with his backpack under his head filled her mind. “We take care of each other,” she told Caesar.

“To answer your question, though, I’m not good at archery,” Peeta said.

“We can’t all be perfect, but I think you come close to it,” Caesar chuckled.

“You’re good at everything else, though.” Katniss turned to look at Peeta, who in turn, gave her a quizzical look. “You’ve fixed my car.”

“That was one time, Katniss,” Peeta rolled his eyes.

“And it’s worked better since. You’re also the tidiest person I’ve ever met! I’m a clean person, but your apartment is never out of place, and you and Finnick live with a _dog_.” Katniss let out an exasperated huff, crossing her arms and raising her eyebrow at him.

“Usually, women are the tidier ones,” Caesar laughed. “Care to explain?”

Peeta rubbed his neck gently. “I have two older brothers, and you would expect for us to leave clothes everywhere. Our mother is very strict, though, and she would never let us make a mess. Plus, the bakery always had to be clean because we always made fresh baked goods. Everything in my house had to be spotless, and I carried that over with me when I moved out.”

“Do you still bake?” Katniss wondered how Caesar didn’t get tired of the people that sat across from him. He was genuinely interested in knowing about their lives.

“When I have time, “Peeta said. “It takes a while for dough to rise, so I either do that early in the morning or during weekends.”

The subject of baking didn’t excite Katniss since she didn’t know how to navigate the oven or the contents that Peeta placed in it, but she did appreciate what he made and shared with her. Her mouth watered from the thought. “He makes me cheese buns at times. I think I’ve gained a few pounds after eating so many of them.”

“Right, that’s what I bake the most. She _loves_ cheese buns,” Peeta snickered.

“Next time you’re here, you should bring me a couple to try out,” Caesar said licking his lips. He crossed his arms in thought. “Katniss, do you bake?”

She shook her head. “I help by gathering the ingredients, but I watch him do all the work. He has the patience of a saint, which is something I lack.”

“I’m sure you’ve picked up something from him,” Caesar said, sounding positive about his assumption.

“Just fresh baked goods,” Katniss answered. She was glad the audience was receptive to her dry sense of humor.

“Any siblings, darling?”

The question brought back the feeling of nostalgia and thoughts of her sister, Primrose. She talked to her, but it wasn’t the same as talking to her face-to-face. She missed her the most. “I have a little sister who is hopefully watching us right now,” she said as she looked at the camera.

“Your families must feel proud of you both. I’m proud of you and we aren’t even related,” Caesar laughed. “So tell me, you have these talents. What are you studying in your university?”

“Architecture…nothing to do with baking and a bit to do with painting,” Peeta laughed, sounding a bit shy about his studies.

Caesar set his note cards down in a dramatic way, as if giving up for that moment. “If I have any say at all, I would encourage you to do something with your talent for painting, at least.”

“Well, I put my sketching skills to use when I prepare blueprints and designs,” Peeta explained. “I’ve always found structure interesting. In fact, I’ve been looking at the ceiling of the studio and I’m wondering how it has stayed in a curved way for so long.”

“He’s really good at math and physics,” Katniss clarified, filling in details for Peeta.

“Gravity says it should come down, but there is definitely a stronger material that’s keeping it from automatically falling and crashing onto us,” Peeta said.

“You’re right on that point. This studio has been standing for twenty years,” Caesar nodded. “Katniss, are you pursuing anything in relation to your skills in archery?”

“Hardly,” she giggled. “I’m studying botany. I’m interested in plants.”

“What caught your attention?”

Katniss thought about the reason behind her choosing a degree in biology, and why specifically focusing on plants. It wasn’t something she liked talking about, but she was in an interview and Caesar had been helping her feel at ease, even forgetting that there was a crowd to begin with. “My mother’s a doctor, but she knows about herbal remedies and the uses of plants for medical purposes. She and my father have a plant book where they had recorded plants they wanted to remember and I would read the book when I was younger.”

“She starts talking about different functions of plants and I may not know a lot about them, but at least she has enthusiasm for biology,” Peeta snorted.

“So if I’m ill, you could recommend me something that would make me feel better?” Caesar asked with interest.

“If you’re near a forest or plants, then yes,” Katniss laughed. “I’m not interested in the medical field, but the use of plants for medicine is something I think we all should be familiar with.”

“Perhaps you would consider a modeling career since you seem to be a good muse for Peeta?”

The host’s last statement caught her off guard, and she felt surprised that he would even suggest such a thing. “I don’t think I could ever be a model,” she shook her head and flipped her hand at Caesar.

“And why is that?”

“Because…” Katniss looked for Cinna again, feeling that same pressure from before return. Looking into his eyes, she took a deep breath and felt herself relax. “Because I wouldn’t be Peeta’s muse anymore. I only want to model for him.”

“You two have no desire of being a famous duo?” Caesar asked, as if fame had any importance in Katniss’s life.

“We don’t do it for recognition. It’s just fun to paint,” Peeta shrugged.

“I also highly doubt any other painter would reward me with cheese buns that are as good as his,” Katniss said with a shake of her head.

“Would you still paint for someone if they requested a piece? Such as the way I have requested from you, Peeta?” Caesar raised an eyebrow at his guests.

“Of course!” Peeta nodded. “It’s an honor to receive a request from someone who supports my art.”

“Good because your style is attractive. And it’s not just me who says it. You brought paintings with you from District 12 and we’ve put them up for auctions. They’ve been selling, Peeta,” Caesar said matter-of-factly.

To say Peeta was impressed was an understatement. He raised his eyebrows in disbelief and looked at his host with wide eyes. “Really? I just brought them in today.”

“I’m telling you, Peeta. You’re in demand. We’ll show you once the program ends. I have a few more questions for you that are—in my opinion—a bit more fun for you two.” Caesar shifted through his note cards and got to one that caught his attention. “Can you describe each other in a few words?”

Katniss looked at Caesar and frowned. “I…can’t just pick a few words. Its  _Peeta._ ”

“Then say more than a few words.”

“He’s a painter. He’s a baker. He always sleeps with the windows open and never takes sugar in his tea. And he always double knots his shoelaces. …He’s kind and generous…and he gets easily flustered.” As she spoke, she had directed her attention to Peeta as if she were speaking to him. She had the satisfaction of seeing him blush, not being able to hold back a smile.

“Now I have to step it up a notch since I described you in like four words,” he said.

“What’s your description of me?”

“That you’re stubborn and good with a bow,” Peeta answered.

Katniss nodded and felt happy with his description. “That about sums me up.”

They laughed at the acceptance of how short Peeta’s answer was. “Don’t try to add anything to it; It’s perfectly fine.”

“But you were elaborate. I feel like I cut you short!”

“That’s literally all there is to me,” Katniss countered with a smile.

“So then, swimming and running don’t count?” Peeta asked, raising an eyebrow at her. “I’ve said it before, but you get competitive.”

“Oh, like you don’t,” Katniss rolled her eyes. “I could outrun you in my sleep, though.”

“Is that a challenge, Everdeen?” Peeta asked as he looked at her.

“I am willing to race you, right now,” Katniss answered. She reached for her shoes and began to feel for the straps to undo them.

“Can we race here, Caesar?” Peeta asked as he reached for his own shoes.

“You can’t, but we would love to see the both of you run and compete against each other.”

The two let go of their shoes and gave each other fake frowns.

“We’ll find a gym with a track tomorrow,” Peeta said to Katniss.

“We’re running five miles,” Katniss continued.

“Six.”

“…and a half.”

Peeta looked over to Caesar. “She gets like this when it comes to her dominant sports, so I make it a point to beat her.”

“Fine, but if you want to make it interesting, then the loser buys the other dinner,” Katniss proposed.

“Oh, Katniss,” Peeta said with a roll of his eyes. “Win or lose, I’ll still buy you dinner.”

The crowd began to cheer and clap, giving them a few ‘awws’ and other similar screams.

Caesar gave Katniss a look. “I think you have yourself a gentleman”, he said as he pointed at Peeta with his pen briefly.

“I think so, too,” Katniss said with a nod. “You saved chivalry, Mellark.”

That earned her laughs from both Peeta and the audience again. Caesar gave the audience a couple of moments to recover before continuing. “What’s a question you would like to ask one another? You seem to know a lot about each other, but is there something you’re curious about that you don’t know?”

Katniss looked at Peeta and raised an eyebrow with a knowing smile on her face. “Boxers or briefs?”

Peeta burst into laughter while the audience gasped. Someone wolf-whistled while others howled suggestively.

Peeta regained his composure and looked Katniss right in the eye. “As if you don’t know.”

The amused gasps of the audience were louder as they processed his answer and Caesar looked at them expectantly. “Care to explain?”

Katniss was beet read, but couldn’t contain her laughter. “I  _do_ know, but it’s actually an innocent reason!”

Peeta shook his head. “You think they’ll believe what we say though?”

Katniss shrugged her shoulders. “Well, you and I know the truth.”

“They’ll still believe what they want,” Peeta laughed.

Katniss rolled her eyes, but her smile didn’t fade. “Just tell the story.”

Peeta rubbed his forehead with his thumb and index finger before directing his attention to her and their interviewer.

“She and I went grocery shopping and I needed new underwear, so she went with me.”

Caesar blinked and made a hurried gesture with his hand. “That’s it? Come on, Peeta, give us some details!”

The audience started to laugh at the idea of the story.

Peeta and Katniss looked at each other again, smiling but not knowing how else to elaborate before Katniss thought of something.

“He spent around twenty minutes searching, and I gave him my opinion on a few packs he selected. I noticed he likes them pretty tight,” she offered as an answer, but that earned her more amused laughter and more howls.

Caesar couldn’t contain his laughter either. “Are you wearing them right now, Peeta?”

“I’m wearing new ones,” Peeta answered. His cheeks were red, but Katniss couldn’t find any sort of embarrassment on his face. He seemed to be enjoying himself and as much as Katniss tried to feel guilty, she couldn’t.

“This may be an indiscretion, but do you know what she wears?” Caesar asked, feigning shyness.

“I don’t,” Peeta said as he shook his head. “And I haven’t asked her.”

Katniss bit back a laugh, almost certain she was wiping off her lipstick with her teeth.

“Would you like to answer that, Katniss?” Caesar asked.

“Must I?”

“Lie and say you wear boxers, too,” Peeta said, pretending to whisper in her ear even though his suggestion was loud enough for everyone to hear.

Katniss punched his arm lightly before turning back to their host. “I own…lady underwear,” she finally said.

Caesar looked like he couldn’t believe either of them before he directed his attention to the audience, shrugging as if he didn’t know what to do with his guests.

“We swear we’re friends,” Peeta added, as if saying that would erase what they had just said.

“Yes, friends with a few benefits,” Caesar said with a nod.

There were a few screams that came from some of the audience members, knowing what Caesar had implied.

He cleared his throat to direct them to his next points. “Speaking of which, you two have this painter-muse dynamic. I think that’s a good benefit to have, you know, between friends and all.” He winked at the audience. Katniss wasn’t sure how to get out of that one, but she didn’t want to let go of Peeta’s hand.

“More or less”, Peeta nodded.

“Tell me about that.”

“My priority is to make Katniss feel comfortable,” Peeta explained after a moment. “In fact, for the painting you requested, I let her choose her pose.”

“He wouldn’t let me see the final result, though,” Katniss pouted.

“Patience is a virtue, honey,” Peeta said as he rubbed his thumb against the knuckles of her hand.

“Which you have mastered, but unfortunately, I have not. And I will continue to be impatient until you show it to me!”

“I, too, am impatient to see what you have created, Peeta,” Caesar interjected. “I’ve wondered what you were able to do with this theme of the Girl on Fire.”

“I can show you the painting now. It’s backstage,” Peeta offered.

“Please. I’ve been anticipating this and I’m sure you’ll blow our minds yet again!”

Peeta stood and walked towards the edge of the stage, signaling to the crew from the back to bring out the heavy canvas he had brought and had carefully covered with a delicate material. The crewmen rolled out the cart with the painting and placed it in the center of the stage so people would be able to see it along with Caesar and Katniss.

When he pulled down the curtain-like material, the reaction for the revelation was immediate and Katniss noticed how people stood in order to steal a glance at the beautiful artwork that had her face on it. They gasped and clapped in awe and she noticed multiple camera flashes went off the moment the curtain fell.

Peeta had done it again: he had managed to make her unrecognizably stunning. She was holding a bow and arrow, positioned for her to release the latter, but the only similarities between the beautiful creature that was immortalized in the painting and her was the fact that they were both archers. However, the girl in Peeta’s painting looked intensely focused on her target. He’d captured her from the side, the right portion of her body visible while the left was overshadowed in her position. Part of her hair was being blown gently by the wind as light—perhaps from the sun setting or an artificial light—caused shadows and glows on her face. Her braid rested over her right shoulder, her right arm pulling back the string as she held the arrow in her hand before she released it. The head of the arrow was on fire and it took Katniss a while to realize that it was due to the sparks that surrounded her. In the background, a flurry of evergreen trees encircled her. The intensity of her entire being glowed along with the fire that was caught on her arrow. She wasn’t sure at what exactly she was aiming to hit, but Peeta left it open to the viewer’s interpretation.

From how distracted she was, she hadn’t noticed Caesar’s comments about how gorgeous she looked until she heard Peeta thanking him.

“Is she in a forest?” Caesar asked.

“Yes. Katniss has mentioned that she’s fond of the outdoors and hunting. I thought it would be fitting to show her ferocity in an environment she enjoys,” Peeta explained.

Katniss walked towards Peeta and his painting, admiring the details of her face he had so meticulously added. There was no way she was the same person as the girl on the canvas.

“Do you like it?” Peeta asked as he walked towards her.

In response, Katniss gave him a timid smile and pressed a kiss on his cheek. “I love it.”

“And so do I!” Caesar said with excitement as he faced the audience. “Don’t you love it, folks? Look at the vibrant colors. With that imagery, I wonder how Ms. Everdeen would look with her trademark flames.”

Katniss found Cinna once again, this time asking him with his eyes for reassurance. When she saw him nod, she knew the time had come.

“I’m wearing them right now. Would you like to see?” she asked Caesar, a small smile on her lips.

Caesar gave her an incredulous look. “Is it safe?”

“Of course,” Katniss giggled. She gathered the train of her dress in one hand, but she found to keep her balance a bit of a challenge. That’s when Peeta took a hold of her hand to steady her and offered to help her. He took a step back to give her enough space and twirled her around, activating the effects of the dress she wore. Her skirt was surrounded by flames for a moment before the rest of her body became engulfed with synthetic fire, but it didn’t stop there. It not only spread from head to toe of her being, but it also spread to Peeta, who didn’t stop spinning her until the fire reached his jacket sleeve and surrounded him as well. For a moment, he evaluated himself and when he realized the fire was harmless, he continued to give Katniss a couple more spins. Needless to say, the crowd was losing its mind at the show of them seeming unscathed by the fire.

“Caesar, would you like to try it?” Katniss asked, holding some of the fire in her hand. She wondered when it would get extinguished.

With curiosity and a bit of hesitance, the talk show host reached out his hand and touched the fire, laughing when he realized it gave his hand a tickle. “Your stylists have certainly outdone themselves! Fantastic job!”

The crowds cheered for the couple lit by synthetic flames, demanding more of them, but Caesar asked them to calm down with a wave of his hand.

“As you two know, I give my guests a challenge related to a certain talent they possess. Now, Peeta, seeing as you paint—and you do it well—my challenge for you is to create something in five minutes. It’s a fun exercise; it doesn’t have to be perfect,” Caesar explained. He gave another signal to the backstage crew and they brought out a large canvas and easel with a cart full of paints. “And seeing as how your lovely muse is present, I will ask her to pose for you to fulfill the challenge.”

“Five minutes, huh?” Peeta asked as he looked at Caesar.

“Are you up for it?”

“Of course. I just need to take this jacket off. I wouldn’t want to get it dirty.” As Peeta removed his suit jacket, female audience members screamed with excitement. That got a laugh out of him. “It’s just a jacket!”

One of the crew members took it from his hand and gave him an apron. Katniss wasn’t sure why those screaming girls rubbed her the wrong way, but she sure as hell didn’t want for that to get to Peeta’s head. She helped him tie the apron along his back securely, making sure the bow was tight and neat, before Caesar took her hand and guided her to the platform where she would stand.

“If it helps you concentrate, we can play music,” Caesar offered.

“Katniss can choose. After all, she’ll be standing for five minutes straight,” Peeta explained. “Something slow?”

“You know I have awful music taste,” she reminded as she faced Peeta.

“Pick the worst song then,” Peeta teased, taking a few bottles of paint and placing different colors on a paint palette.

“These types of paints dry quickly, so you don’t need to worry about them running or getting mixed with overlapping layers,” Caesar pointed out. He took his place a good distance from Peeta while Katniss decided on a couple of songs. She let the crew man that held Peeta’s jacket know about her selection and she took her place, putting her hand on her hip and standing as straight as she could, the way Effie had repeated for her to do.

There was no way she would be able to talk to Peeta during that short amount of time he would be painting. He immersed himself in his work that he was a different person altogether. Therefore, she had to entertain herself in some other way. The music helped ease her tension and she was starting to feel comfortable with the crowd in front of her. She gave them a smile before turning to look at Peeta. The music played—a song about a million shadows—and she hoped she had made the right choice for Peeta until she heard him ask her to spin for her again. He had a smile on his face, which indicated that he was enjoying himself. That had been the purpose of agreeing to join him in this ordeal, so if he was having a decent time, then she would make the most of it as well. She nodded at him and carefully collected her train again, grounding herself as much as possible with the heels she was wearing. She spun around six times, hearing the crowd cheer for her as she did so.

Caesar took her hand to help her keep her balance and she noticed how different it felt from Peeta’s. Her friend’s hand was warm and welcoming just like him. Caesar’s was smooth and a bit cold. The second song began, but Katniss didn’t see Peeta get nervous. If there was something he naturally possessed, it was confidence and he had more than enough to go around. If he didn’t worry, then she wouldn’t either, so she did her best to enjoy the rest of the time she would pose for him.

She saw him handle a paint brush, running his fingers through the top rapidly to smear some paint on the canvas and that made her curious to see what he had come up with on the spot. He finished just as the buzzard to indicate that the time was up rang and there was the familiar clapping once again.

Caesar rushed over to see what Peeta had made and didn’t look the slightest bit disappointed. Quite the opposite, in fact. His enthusiasm was elevated two-fold, it seemed, because he looked like he was losing his mind. Peeta had left his canvas to help Katniss navigate in her heels and she was silently thankful for the gesture and for the fact that she would be able to remove the shoes she wore soon.

“You got paint on your face,” she muttered to him, or tried to, since the microphone attached to her dress caught what she said and the crowd was able to hear her.

“Do I?” Peeta asked, bringing his fingers to feel for any specs.

“I’ll wash it off for you in a bit. You’re like a five-year-old; you always do that when you paint,” she pointed out with a chuckle.

“It’s not my fault the paint doesn’t behave,” Peeta said as he rolled his eyes.

As they neared Peeta’s painting station, Katniss eyed a clean white rag that had been provided with the paints and a couple of glass full of clear, clean water. She immersed part of the rag in the water before wiping Peeta’s cheek gently, rubbing off the spots of paint she had noticed. The crowd gave them affectionate coos once again, unable to miss the sweet gesture between the two before Katniss set the rag down to inspect his clean face.

She turned to see his painting and when her eyes met his creation, she didn’t know what to expect. Maybe a flaw here and there since there was limited time. However, she hadn’t thought Peeta would be such a master in his craft that he would have something ready in the allotted time frame, at least not in the kind of quality he left on the canvas.

“Peeta…it’s beautiful,” she gasped.

“I think it’s alright for a five-minute painting,” he said, trying to undermine his efforts.

“No, she’s perfect.” There wasn’t as much detail as his other works, but it was still able to independently look as stunning.

On the canvas, he had drawn Katniss with her gorgeous, flowing, red dress, her hand on her hip and her head held high. She was surrounded by the synthetic flames in a brilliant orange, but the fire seemed to go around her instead of engulfing her, as if respecting her presence. It almost looked as if the flames were following a command and Katniss had ordered them to stand beside her, as if she controlled them completely. The flames around her back looked strange at first glance, but Katniss was able to figure out what they looked like: wings. Peeta had molded her into a fire bird.

“No tricks! No time lapses! You saw it here live! The Artist, Peeta Mellark, and his fabulous muse, Katniss Everdeen, the Girl on Fire!”

The claps grew louder, clearly impressed with Peeta’s talent. The adrenaline seemed to have faded without Katniss’s notice, but for that she was glad. Caesar took each of their hands in his and raised their arm in a triumphant gesture, as if showing off the talent he had discovered. Once lowered, he shook Peeta’s hand firmly, congratulating him for his incredible skills before taking Katniss’s hand and giving it a respectful kiss.

“Such a pleasure to have you both. I hope to repeat this in the near future,” Caesar said with a smile.

In the moments that followed, Caesar gave the crowd his farewell and they were all given the signal that they were off the air. Just like that, the show was over. Katniss and Peeta didn’t have time to process what happened as they were guided by security guards to their entourage. Judging by how pleased Effie looked, Katniss assumed they did a good job, but they weren’t given any details as they were directed towards the doors of the backstage exit. She hadn’t even taken a step outside when she saw a camera flash and a rather sick feeling rushed through Katniss. She had forgotten about the paparazzi, but at least there were guards surrounding her and Peeta, keeping them safe and concealed from the screaming people and intrusive photographers outside. That was the only negative side to the situation, but the rest of the experience with Caesar had been pleasant and enjoyable. As long as she got to see Peeta’s smile and hold his hand, that was all that mattered to her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted to finish this so badly I slept at like 5 am. I'm really stubborn when it comes to completing parts, but it's not like I haven't done this before. Thankfully, weekends exist lol. Let me know what you think! I wish I could have used Peeta's lines about the Capitol having different showers and him smelling like roses, but I didn't know how to fit that in here and I made space for Caesar to talk to them both. This was so much fun and I'm so happy I actually had the chance to get through it! Hopefully, I can update next weekend. Fingers crossed!
> 
> The song I describe as 'a million shadows' is a spoof of the song Silhouettes by Of Monsters and Men, which is part of the Catching Fire sound track. I love that song.
> 
> Also, Idk why this has two end notes. They seem to appear in my screen.


	9. Part 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted to publish an update before school started again (thanks Labor Day), so I hope this can suffice for now! It isn't as long as the previous two parts, but still there is everlark goodness. I hope you all enjoy!
> 
> Disclaimer: The Hunger Games trilogy belongs to Suzanne Collins. I just use her characters as barbie dolls to play with and write stories about them.

The anxiety from being on television was over, but having to face paparazzi who flashed their cameras in every direction and screamed questions at Katniss brought on a new kind of nervousness that wouldn’t subside until she and Peeta were safely guided to the vehicle that brought them to Caesar’s studio. Behind the closed door of the long, sturdy car, the muffled yells and cheers still rung in her ears, even after it pulled away and drove towards their hotel. Letting out a sigh only brought some relief to her body, but the necessity to relax bothered her. The warmth of Peeta’s hand in hers sent soothing shocks through her body that led her heart to flutter and slow down its pumping; despite this, she dared to take a look at him and found a curious expression grace his features. Reassuring him that she felt alright, she gave his hand a light squeeze before turning her attention to look out the window. The night life in the Capitol was far too new for her to properly process. How did the citizens ever get used to living in such a place full of noise, lights, and concrete? She hadn’t seen a patch of trees in sight, just a couple of trees here and there with the occasional bush decorating them. She was so used to her district, which was full of trees, nature, and open space.

Arriving to the hotel should have offered a welcoming air, but there was no such thing since the two prep teams and Effie talked throughout the elevator ride and up until they opened the door to their suite. Katniss was close to losing her mind and if she had to listen to these idiots talk about how awful of an idea it was to host a party about feathers then she would stuff feathers down all of their throats in order to shut them up. Luckily, Portia and Cinna came in and took their respective charges to help them change out of their interview outfits.

“There’s a high chance you two will be on the news tomorrow morning,” Cinna said as he helped Katniss with her dress. The zipper was somewhere in the back where Katniss hadn’t been able to reach, so Cinna stepped in.

“Thanks for the warning,” Katniss pouted, trying to fight the mental images of her on television. “How seriously do the people here take these interviews anyway?”

Cinna let a moment pass before answering. “Very seriously. If you were anonymous today, you won’t be tomorrow. When people get interviewed by Caesar, we hear more about his guests as opposed to other show hosts who bring in new talent.”

It was interesting how one person held the power to be that influential, especially in the media. “So I should kiss my privacy goodbye then?”

“It depends on whether you find that to be a good or bad thing, but yes. You will have some kind of celebrity status, especially since the interview was successful.” He was actually smiling and Katniss should have been conflicted, but his reaction was sincere enough to help her relax a bit. “You two did a great job up there. I don’t know if you could see, but the audience enjoyed the way you two interacted.”

“Did they?” Katniss chuckled. “I thought I was making a fool out of myself.”

“Not at all. Caesar doesn’t let his interviews fail.” Cinna removed the beautiful jewelry and set it on the desk before getting to work on her hair. “You and Peeta work well together, too, you know?”

“He did most of the work, though,” Katniss shrugged.

“Not from what I got to see.” Cinna recounted the audience’s perspective of the interview and Katniss couldn’t believe some of the things he said. He heard people say she and Peeta had great chemistry and it was no wonder they were together, whatever that meant.

With the conversation, Katniss hardly felt the time pass and before she knew it, her face had been cleared of make-up and Cinna had set up her pajamas, her own, which came in her luggage. Despite the long day, she didn’t want to sleep. Perhaps it had to do with the rush of emotions she felt all throughout the twenty-four hours that led to the interview and she still felt tense, but she was restless and wanted to see Peeta. The sight of him in his own sleeping clothes, no make-up, and messy hair brought relief to her; after being prepped to look his best, seeing him in his most unkempt state gave Katniss a form of satisfaction. She probably looked like a mess herself so at least that made two of them. The prep teams had left some time after they got back and the suite was quiet for a change, only having Effie’s voice echo in the hallway as she spoke to Haymitch. Once left alone by Cinna and Portia, Katniss pulled Peeta into her room, a small smile on her face.

“Want to have a movie night?” she asked.

“Do I have a choice?” Peeta chuckled, though he didn’t put up any resistance as he let Katniss guide him.

“Don’t tell me you want to sleep already,” she teased.

“With people talking in the living room? I don’t think I could sleep even if I tried,” Peeta pointed out. “Movie night it is!”

It would have been nice if they had had some snacks to munch on—Katniss was starting to feel hungry and the light foods she had eaten between being styled by her prep team hadn’t done much to satiate her needs. Seeing as how it was close to midnight, she doubted there would be any services available. That, and she didn’t want to talk to anyone through the phone. The only person she wanted to have any sort of conversation with was with Peeta.

They browsed through the channels, hoping something exciting would be on. They hadn’t found a movie that interested them, but when Peeta was flipping through the channels at light speed as a way to get through the dozens that were installed, Katniss caught a glimpse of one of her favorite shows and had him flip back so they could watch. She wasn’t the type to be into franchises with romance in it, but she admitted the program was excellently written and the plot was interesting. The premise of _Lovely Bullets_ featured an assassin who had to protect a politician who was running for president. There were twists and turns and an abundance of drama. She had gotten Peeta to watch the first two seasons with her and he blamed her for getting him emotionally invested in the show. He got her into the book series _Game of Survival_ , so they were even on those terms; she, too, blamed him for being obsessed with the books and its star-crossed lovers for a couple. She hadn’t been aware that the Capitol was running _Lovely Bullets_ ; as far as she knew, it was only available on the video steaming platform _Webfilms_ , but she didn’t watch that much television to begin with so perhaps she had missed an announcement for its debut on the small screen.

“Aren’t you glad this isn’t a movie?” Peeta asked, handing her the remote before laying against the mountain of pillows they had set up against the bed frame.

“There’s far too much information for it to be crammed into two hours of disappointment,” Katniss answered. “ _GoS_ is the exception, though.”

Peeta snorted. “Only because you think Parker’s attractive.”

Heat radiated from Katniss’s cheeks as she pursed her lips. “He’s alright.”

“It’s okay to admit it, Katniss.” Perhaps he meant to make fun of her, but his tone didn’t support the assumption. “I think Kohl’s pretty cute.”

Katniss rolled her eyes. “ _Of course_ , you do. Every guy finds her pretty.”

Peeta snickered. “You don’t have to be so sour about it. It’s not like I’ll marry her or anything.”

“I am not being sour. You are allowed to think girls are attractive just like I am allowed to think guys are attractive,” Katniss pointed out.

She caught him staring at her with a mischievous grin on his face. “I mean, I get what you’re saying, but you sound annoyed. The actress who plays her just so happens to have an aesthetically pleasing face.”

“And so does the actor who plays Parker,” she countered. “He has very sweet eyes…and a strong, square jaw…” He wasn’t the only one with that type of facial structure. The resemblance between Parker and Peeta was uncanny: despite the difference in hair and eye color, they both had chiseled chins and strong jawlines, warm and welcoming eyes, and sensitive demeanors. Parker was a book character, yet if he were real, he would be just as much of a soft teddy bear as Peeta. She would never say that to him, though. One notable difference between the two was that Parker had admitted his feelings for the protagonist, Kohl. Peeta, on the other hand, was Katniss’s best friend and she doubted he felt anything other than a familial kind of love for her. She couldn’t help feeling some disappointment, even though she didn’t want to, because their dynamic was well established and Katniss liked it that way. She was sure Peeta felt the same.

“Yeah, those types of features tend to attract a lot of girls,” Peeta said, breaking through her line of thought.

“Do you say that from experience?” she blurted out. If there was any way for her to eat the words that escaped her mouth, she would like find it because he wasn’t meant to hear them.

“No, I uh…just meant it as a passing comment.” The tone of confusion in Peeta’s voice let Katniss know he wasn’t expecting her to say it.

She refused to look at him, afraid that her blush would get her in some hot water with him. She didn’t want to explain what she meant and she hoped he wouldn’t pick up on it. It was the first time they shared some sort of awkward silence and Katniss wasn’t sure how to break it. She lost track of how long it lasted, but shots from the television took care of filling the room with some much-needed sound.

“It’s getting to a good part,” Peeta pointed out.

“Too bad it’s about to end, though,” Katniss answered. She had seen the show enough times to know what part it was in and what would happen next. Just as she had said, the screen cut to black and the end credits began to roll.

“Wanna check to see if there’s anything else going on?” he asked as he reached for the remote.

Katniss took it in her hand and held it to her chest protectively. “No, I like this channel.”

“Come on, Katniss. I’m just going to see—”

“No! There could be another episode that’s up next!” She lied down, hugging the remote while she looked up at him with challenging eyes.

He looked down at her with an eyebrow raised and she wondered what he was thinking. Suddenly, she felt a light jab against her stomach and she flinched away from Peeta, but a second followed soon after and Katniss wasn’t able to avoid his fingers as he tickled her mid-section. She let out a shriek, not being able to contain her laughter as she thrashed from side to side in attempts to make him stop. She heard him laugh, clearly enjoying himself with what he was doing.

“Let go…of the…remote!” He tried taking it away from her, but even while being tickled, Katniss wouldn’t let go of it. Not if she rolled off the bed or if she hit herself with the side table. The remote was in her custody and Peeta couldn’t have it. He’d have to pry it out of her fingers if he was desperate enough.

“Get your own remote!” She rolled in an attempt to get away from him, but Peeta was able to easily halt and subdue her.

Without many options left and the weight of him over her small frame, Katniss raised her arms over her head with the remote tightly grasped around her fingers. She stretched as far as she could so Peeta wouldn’t reach, but despite her best efforts, she felt his strong hand wrap around her wrists, successfully pinning her against the bed.

There was a pause and for a moment the only thing Katniss could hear was their heavy breathing and the television playing in the background. Peeta’s cheeks were flushed, his hair was a mess, his breath was coming out in huffs from his mouth as he tried catching his breath, and he had a wild and playful look in his eyes. Katniss wondered if she looked just as disheveled as he did, only with long hair wrapped in knots. She felt his weight on her and it took her some time to realize she held him between her legs. She hadn’t thought the tickle fight would reach such an intensity.

The sensible thing would have been to push him off of her since he was twice her weight, but her arms and legs weren’t coinciding with the orders her brain was giving them. He wasn’t on guard, so it would have been easy to get him off or even surprise him with her own tickle attack. She was doing neither of those things, though. Instead of Peeta thinking for them, in which he would climb off of her so as not to crush her, she saw the way he leaned his face down, inching closer to hers with every passing second. Katniss’s mind felt like it was swimming from adrenaline that was delivered from the tickle fight and it didn’t allow her to fully focus on the situation. All she knew was that Peeta was centimeters from her face and it didn’t help that he rested his forehead against hers one bit. Her reserve was long gone when his warm breath lingered against her lips and she would have closed the gap had there not been a loud knock on the door that brought her back to reality. It was followed with the tinkering of the door knob in an attempt to open the door.

“Keep it down in there, you two!”

In less than a second, Katniss felt Peeta’s weight shift off of her and onto the bed beside her while she sat up and covered her legs with the bed’s blankets. Effie came through the door, an exasperated expression on her face.

“Some of us are trying to get our beauty sleep,” she said as she waved her fingers over her face to prove a point.

“You might need more than just a few hours of sleep,” Haymitch deadpanned as he waited outside the door. For one thing, Katniss had to agree with her uncle; Effie looked so different without all of her make-up and wigs.

“At least, I can _get some sleep_ unlike someone who depends on liquor to knock them out,” she shot back with irritation. She turned back to look at Katniss and Peeta, who had gone back to laying against the pillows. “As for you two: Peeta, it’s indecent for a young man to spend the night in a young lady’s bed. To your room.”

Katniss scowled at her before the two looked at one another with confusion, but ultimately, Peeta obliged. He tossed Katniss the remote before getting up and telling her to have fun, referring to watching programs on the television. Effie guided him out of the room and closed the door afterwards, leaving Katniss alone with nothing but the TV to accompany her. There was no point in continuing with her viewing, though. Peeta was wrong; the fun had ended when Effie barged in. Hadn’t she heard of privacy, or knocking first? Asking if she could come in would have given them a fair warning, too. She couldn’t expect for herself to get any sleep after what happened, though. She couldn’t lie and say she wouldn’t welcome it.

The ghost of Peeta’s breath still hovered around her face, making her blush at the memory. He had been so close to kissing her and the strange thing was she hadn’t wanted to hold back. She wondered what would have happened, though. Would they have enjoyed it? With the heat of the moment, it would have been easy to get into it, but afterwards? Katniss knew where they stood and so did he. Perhaps it was just the tickle fight that was to blame. Still, the scent of cinnamon that came from him as he leaned forward invaded her senses once again. There was no mistaking the desire in his eyes as he looked at her. This wasn’t just the fault of the circumstances. Would she ever know if his intentions were clear?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh, these two will be the death of me. 
> 
> Lovely Bullets is a spoof and nod towards my fic, Cupid Owns Guns, haha! And, of course, there's Game of Survival once again. And I couldn't leave out a spoof of Netflix (Webfilms). Peeta and Katniss are college students. We read and watch a lot of things, and get obsessed and emotionally involved in franchises. I think they would as well. 
> 
> Also, does anyone else like jealous Katniss or is it just me? 
> 
> I hope I can update by next week, but I have an exam coming up so I may write after that is over, or if the weekend is kind to me, then maybe by then. I've found writing this story to be great stress release even if I sleep at ungodly hours of the night and I am left exhausted. I sleep happy, though. Let me know what you think!
> 
> I'm softpeetabread on tumblr, come say hi!


	10. Part 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I didn't have much time to write more than this one little piece, but I hope it suffices for the time being. I promise this is still a college au lol. Enjoy!
> 
> Disclaimer: The Hunger Games trilogy belongs to Suzanne Collins. I just use her characters as barbie dolls to play with and write stories about them.

After what happened, Katniss was hardly able to sleep, apart from the fact that the unfamiliar setting of the hotel made her feel fidgety. Perhaps it was because the culprit of her restless night was sleeping in the room across the hall, or maybe it was because she wanted to abandon her warm bed and crawl into his. What Peeta had said during their interview was correct in that they hadn’t slept together, and he meant it in an innocent way, too. Sleeping beside one another. They had fallen asleep next to each other while watching a movie on the couch of Katniss’s apartment and while they read on the carpeted floor of Peeta’s apartment, but other than that, no beds were shared and no skin was touched. She didn’t know why she wanted to cuddle up next to him now since her bed provided heat with the blanket and comforter that she managed to wrap around her. She didn’t even know if he would mind, though when it came to her, Peeta had a ridiculously high tolerance level and she wondered how he never got tired of her shenanigans or suggestions. He always went with what she suggested, unless he had a suggestion that she also favored. She just wanted to rest beside him, damnit. He was warm and she liked the way he gently held her.

With the conflicted thoughts running rampant in her clouded mind, she wondered how she had managed to fall asleep, but the voices that echoed in the living room roused her from her dreamless sleep. It was rare for her to sleep in—she would automatically wake up at six thirty every morning, even without an alarm to help her—but after reading the time on the digital clock that rested on the bedside table, she felt like there were outside forces that were contributing to this sudden conflict she had with herself and what she wanted to believe was just a friendly feeling for Peeta. She changed, braided her hair, and went towards the kitchen in hopes that there would still be breakfast available downstairs, and also hoped Peeta would want to go with her, if he hadn’t eaten already. Thinking about him eating without her stung a little and she hadn’t even confirmed if it was true or not.

She found Effie and Haymitch in the kitchen when she walked in, but Peeta wasn’t in sight. Unless he was still asleep, which she doubted since he woke up at four thirty every morning and she was more than sure he had stuck to his mental alarm unlike her.

“Where’s Peeta?” she asked as she looked around.

“Good morning to you, too, sweetheart,” Haymitch remarked with sarcasm. “We’re great on this fine day, just finished watching the news. Thanks for asking. Your boy toy’s in a meeting with Caesar Flickerman.”

“He’s not my boy toy,” Katniss began before her uncle’s words finally registered. “A meeting?”

“Something about his paintings being sold. He’s filling him in on the numbers and all.”

“Katniss, you were on the news!” Effie said with excitement. “Everyone’s talking about you and Peeta!”

Even though Cinna warned her, Katniss was still not prepared for the attention that she and her friend were receiving. She was afraid of the magnitude and the influence Caesar had, shooting them into the spotlight. Peeta was a natural for it and it was easy to see why, but she wasn’t as welcoming and losing her privacy was something she mourned.

“Who’s ‘everyone’?”

Katniss went to sit beside her escort as she adjusted her position to face her properly. “So far, your interview has been featured on every news channel. Everyone has been blown away by Peeta’s art, and your relationship, of course,” Effie explained.

This caused Katniss to laugh. “Has the Capitol ever seen two people being friends?”

Effie stared at her, her expression hard for Katniss to read. “Is that what your generation calls it these days?”

“Why don’t you just show her?” Haymitch sighed. “She isn’t going to figure it out with your high-context communication.”

Pouting at him, Effie took the remote and turned the television on. There was a program with hosts dressed in colorful clothing and exaggerated hair talking on and on about how beautiful this was and how outrages that was. Katniss didn’t care about what they were fretting about, but apparently, it was supposed to be important since Effie was showing this to her.

“I thought you said the news were over,” Katniss said, directing her gaze at Haymitch.

“It’s been going on for hours. Just wait for it.”

“We all saw the interview last night with Caesar and his two lovely guests and I can’t even describe the warm fuzzies I feel for those two!” One commentator said. She had purple hair in the shape of a corkscrew and dramatically painted purple lips.

“Is it me or are they too shy to say they’re dating?” Another asked as images of Peeta and Katniss smiling at each other appeared on the screen. Katniss wasn’t sure if she was looking at the screen so intently because of the scarlet hair on the commentator’s head or the stills of her and Peeta. They weren’t shy in the slightest. They had said the truth about being friends…

“Maybe it’s a District 12 thing,” the first commentator answered. “A friend of a friend lives there and said they’re pretty reserved about relationships.”

“See how important it is to know culture?” A third commentator with bright blue hair in spikes spoke. “Although, if it were me, I would definitely say I’m dating him. Chivalrous, handsome, sweet, _and_ talented? Katniss, you better keep him!”

“Personally, I liked it when he helped steady her after she spun around,” Scarlet Hair said.

The rest of the commentators cooed and sighed.

“For me, the best moment was when they both lit up in flames,” Purple Hair added. “It was amazing. I want flames to come from my clothes, too!”

“Call their stylists. We need more of that in this fashion world!” Bright Blue Hair squealed. “I thought it was sweet how she helped wipe off the paint from his face. They’re too innocent.” Abruptly, she directed her gaze to the camera. “Caesar, why did you bring them here? Look how in love we are with them now!”

“Well, he was really struck by the young man’s talent. I, for one, am more than happy he finally brought him in. Remember how we were all dying to see him in person? Those first pictures of him and his muse weren’t enough for us.” The images Scarlet Hair spoke of appeared on the screen with Katniss and Peeta posing with Caesar in the art gallery back in their university. Who would have thought that something like a modest little art show would have brought them to the biggest television network in the country?

“I think it also has to do with the muse herself. She’s _beautiful_ ,” Purple hair said. “She could use some color in her hair—maybe some orange to go with those fabulous flames—but she has that _natural_ beauty going on.”

At this point, Katniss was feeling nauseated from the overt excitement and exaggeration. There was too much positivity in those five minutes, not to mention their gushing about Peeta and her made her feel uncomfortable. They went on about how they loved Peeta’s art and that they each had bought a painting of their own, now proud owners of a Peeta Piece. They recounted more about their favorite parts of the interview until they came to a quote that threw Katniss through a loop.

“When he said that they didn’t ‘sleep with each other’ as activities they didn’t do together,” Bright Blue Hair snorted. “They _look_ innocent, but believe me, that was anything _but_!”

“I doubt even they believe they’re ‘just friends’,” Purple Hair rolled her eyes.

“Caesar _did_ call it ‘Friends with Benefits’,” Scarlet Hair filled in.

They all squealed, a type of shriek that almost made Katniss’s ears bleed. She had had enough of the ‘news’ and walked away from the living room, hoping to find some peace in her room. However, she was halfway across the kitchen when she heard the front door of the suite open, Peeta’s voice coming from the entrance and greeting her. If she hadn’t been right in front of him, she wouldn’t have felt guilty for walking away from him. However, because she _was_ right in front of him, she made a point of disappearing and hoping it didn’t hurt him that she was taking some of her frustration out on him, even if it wasn’t his fault. And it did hurt her to have to walk away from him because she wanted to see him, she missed him in that time that he was away from her, but at the moment, she felt uncomfortable and annoyed and seeing him wasn’t what was going to help her. At least, that’s what she thought.

“What happened?” Peeta asked.

“The news _really_ brightened up her day!” Haymitch answered, the mocking tone in his voice irritating Katniss further.

She didn’t wait to hear more of the exchange and slammed the door to her room, jumping onto the soft mattress and burring her face in the mountain of pillows that had been left from the movie night she and Peeta had. Even the pillows reminded her of him and reminded her she didn’t want to be away from him. Yet here she was, removing herself from the situation, which is what she always did when she didn’t feel like dealing with it. The knock on her door—gentle and shy, yet firm—told her she had to face him at some point and she couldn’t stay in her room all day. Although, she would take up the challenge if she had the chance.

“Katniss?” Peeta’s muffled voice behind her door sounded concerned and she appreciated every ounce of his care, but she wanted to tell him to go away. She didn’t want to feel guilty if she said something biting to him and she didn’t want to talk about it, but she had learnt that with Peeta, if they communicated, they would solve their problems instead of increasing them. With a sigh, she told him to come in, but she remained on the bed hugging a pillow to her chest. He opened the door slowly—cautiously—and stepped inside her room. Taking the chair that sat near the desk, he brought it towards her bed and rested it beside her, sitting backwards and placing his forearms over the backrest. “If it makes you feel any better, it’s a lot for me, too.”

“You’re really bad at lying, Peeta,” Katniss muttered. “Admit you’re enjoying the attention. You deserve it.”

“You don’t sound too happy about it,” he said, resting his chin over his arms. The light that came through the open curtain of the window landed on his skin, casting shadows here and there while making the hair on his arms shine like gold.

Katniss sat up straight, still holding onto the soft pillow. “I’m happy for _you_ , I really am, but I’m not happy about… you know how I feel about the attention I get.” She puffed out a breath of frustration. “I don’t like the assumptions people make about us, either.”

“Why does it bother you that people say we’re dating?” He didn’t sound hurt, even though she wouldn’t blame him if he did. She could tell he was genuinely curious.

“It’s not that it bothers me. It’s that…people are butting into our business. I don’t know how to handle it.”

“Not sure if this helps, but I have no clue, either. I’ve been hearing all sorts of things this morning… it’s been a bit wild,” Peeta chuckled.

“Where _did_ you go this morning? My uncle said you met with Caesar,” Katniss prompted.

“Yeah,” Peeta sighed, not being able to contain a smile. “Remember he said last night that there were people buying my paintings? Turns out they’ve all been sold, and now there’s a line that wants a piece from me.”

Katniss’s mouth gaped open, not believing what she was hearing. “Even the ones on the smaller canvases?”

Peeta nodded with a crooked smile. “It’s a little overwhelming. I’ve never been in demand.”

“What are you going to do?”

“I guess I’ll paint,” Peeta shrugged. “At some point, I’ll have to halt the line, though. Those paintings I sold have accumulated for years. Selling in one night put into perspective that there’s too many people and only one me. I’ve seen some of the requests and they want a painting of you, too.”

“So it’s not just Caesar that wants my face on his living room wall, then?” Katniss raised an eyebrow in amusement.

“Apparently, not,” Peeta answered.

“Do you mind me asking what’s the price for each painting of yours?” Katniss didn’t want to feel nosy or indiscreet about it, but she was dying to know. How much were these Capitolites willing to spend on Peeta’s humble paintings?

“Well, the thing is that I wasn’t the one that put a price on them. If it had been up to me, I would have given them a lower price, but Caesar worked it out with one of the art gallery directors here and they settled on the prices… They’re expensive.” Peeta wrote some figures on his phone and showed them to Katniss, which left her with her mouth open once again.

“At least the one percent is spending their money wisely,” she said. “Honestly, I wouldn’t blame you if you ditched school for this.”

Peeta started laughing at her suggestion. “I’m in too deep in my program to quit now, Katniss.”

“It would be a shame to let all that math and physics go to waste,” Katniss figured.

“You know what would also be a waste?” Peeta asked. “Staying in the hotel and missing out on the city.”

“We had planned that, but now we’ll be even more noticeable,” she pointed out.

“Who cares? We could walk up to the front of the line and people would probably let us pass,” he shrugged. “If we wear caps and sunglasses, it might help, too,” he added.

She considered it, weighing the pros and cons of being in an unknown, massive city with the boy that made her feel safe. “Fine. If the paparazzi spot us, we run those six and a half miles we promised each other, though.”

“Deal,” Peeta nodded. His expression of confusion turned to amusement when he heard a noise come from Katniss’s stomach. “We aren’t leaving until we have breakfast, though.”

“I thought you ate before leaving.”

“I didn’t want to miss eating here with you.” He stood and set the chair back in its original place. “There’s a buffet, you’ll love it.”

Katniss loved food and he knew it. She hopped off the bed and threw the pillow onto the mattress, putting on her shoes afterwards. She turned when Peeta called to her, wondering what could possibly be addressed now that he had brought up breakfast to her.

“Is that my shirt?” he asked.

She looked down to read the letters on the gray shirt that was three times her clothing size. “Yeah, I stole it from your clean laundry a few days ago.” The words UD12 BOXING stood out on her chest and she had rolled up the sleeves. In agreeance that the shirt didn’t fit her small frame, she used one of her hair ties to form a knot for the excess cloth.

“No wonder I was missing something. I was starting to blame Trident for it getting lost.” The golden retriever popped into Katniss’s head and she couldn’t see him stealing anybody’s clothing unless it belonged to his owner, Finnick. She, on the other hand, had eyed it and silently took it while she helped Peeta fold his laundry. She’d kept one of his jackets, too, but he had consciously given it to her. It hadn’t even crossed her mind that this would bother Peeta, though she had seen it as her just being a bit spoilt by him.

“Do you want it back?” Technically, it was still his. It even had his initials on the back in big, bold letters.

“You can keep it. It looks better on you anyway,” Peeta smiled.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wish school would give me some kind of a break so I could fully develop this arc, but alas, I was able to produce this. Let me know what you think!


	11. Part 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woo, finally an update!! These ideas went back and forth in my head until I was able to write them down. Thank you to everyone that has left comments and kudos!! I really appreciate the support this story is getting. School has been keeping me so busy lately, but I made some time to write this. I hope you guys enjoy! Let me know what you think!
> 
> Disclaimer: The Hunger Games trilogy belongs to Suzanne Collins. I just use her characters as barbie dolls to play with and write stories about them.

Going out should have been easy because it was what Peeta and Katniss did all the time. Leaving their apartment and university had no incidence and leaving home was something they were used to after being enrolled in their programs for almost three semesters. However, leaving the hotel in the Capitol was more of a challenge because their new celebrity status called for protocol that Katniss wasn’t sure she understood. When they were about to walk out, Effie spotted them and asked them to come back because they weren’t allowed to leave without a bodyguard or escort. Their interview with Caesar had proven to be a hit and their faces had been on the news for the entire morning, threatening to continue on for the rest of the day; Katniss dreaded the programing would continue on for the rest of the week, but that was out of her control.

So they went downstairs to have breakfast, after Effie frowned upon their choice of dining. She insisted they use their room service to order breakfast and eat in their suite instead of eating downstairs with the commoners, but neither Katniss nor Peeta had the desire to stay in the hotel room for much longer. Wearing caps, they made their way downstairs with the bodyguards Effie assigned them and to Katniss’s chagrin, they were too close for her comfort. Only a select amount of people was allowed in her personal space and out of the three men that were with her, only Peeta had the permission without her minding. One thing they couldn’t get out of was their mode of transportation: the white vehicle that had brought them from the train station to their hotel, then to Caesar’s studio, then back to their suite, was parked waiting for them outside the reception area and as much as Katniss tried to like it, she couldn’t. It was too flashy, too ostentatious, nothing like what she and Peeta were used to.

The cars they drove were modest and rather aged and used, but they kept them maintained and taken care of. They worked and got them to where they needed to, so they couldn’t complain, plus it was all that they could afford what with being broke college students with money they had saved while working here and there. It had surprised Katniss that even though Peeta worked at his parents’ bakery, which did well, he himself didn’t earn much. He said his mother didn’t pay her sons well for their services, and at some point, Peeta didn’t even expect to receive any sort of compensation because it was a family business, but at least he received something. That was his father’s doing. He saved up enough to buy a car to take to college, and Katniss loved the gray hunk of junk he drove. It was always clean and well-kempt, maintained, and smelt pleasantly. Now that he was earning money from his paintings, she wondered if he would trade it in for a new car. An actual new car. Katniss’s own car wasn’t any better than Peeta’s. It desperately needed a paint job, and it had needed a fix up, which Peeta took care of, but it drove, the air condition worked, and the windows rolled down, so there wasn’t room for a negative comment towards it. She had worked for Sae, an older lady that owned a diner in their town, and she saved up for it. Looking back at it then, she and Peeta weren’t that different, even if their circumstances weren’t the same.

“May we at least pick the locations we want to visit?” Peeta asked the bodyguards who seemed like they were not going to let them have any fun.

“You can go anywhere you want, but we have to be with you at all times,” a tall, burly man with dark hair answered.

Both men wore dark gray suits with black button shirts and dark sunglasses, an earpiece attached in each of their left ears, a communication device strapped to their belt, and unyielding expressions on their faces. Although they were meant to protect them, Katniss felt more conspicuous this way. How were she and Peeta supposed to blend in when two uniformed men were following them around?

She and Peeta looked at one another, neither of them quite agreeing with being followed and watched closely. Katniss took her phone out and began composing a text. With the bodyguards right in front of her, it wasn’t as if she could say things about them to Peeta. Texting was the next best thing.

[Katniss]: So much for enjoying the city.

[Peeta]: Think of it this way: if people crowd us, the big brutes can get them away.

This was true since Katniss was not too keen on having people surround her and look at her. When it happened at their university, she had Johanna to help her, but her feisty friend wasn’t here to push people away for her. She had actual professionals doing the job, but even then, she preferred the anger of Johanna any day. In the Capitol, she didn’t know what to expect, but if the crowds she saw outside the studio told her anything, it was that they were ten times crazier as her classmates. She would need more than two bodyguards. Peeta was excellent in parting a crowd, but he, too, was in the spotlight and would need his own set.

Before coming to the Capitol, Katniss and Peeta had researched and made a list of places they wanted to visit. They weren’t sure if they could hit them all in one day, but they would try to cover as much ground as they could, or as much as they’d be allowed to anyway. There were historical areas that were significant for the war that had happened years prior in the fight for the freedom of the Districts against the tyrannical Capitol. After the war and the successful victory of the Districts, the Capitol decided to keep the part of the city that had taken most of the hits as a sort of exhibition. As a reminder that there was great evil amongst the city, the original main square was now a place to observe and visit. Peeta wanted to see it because of the architecture; Katniss was curious because of the history. Pictures were allowed to be taken, but only of the exhibition. Anyone caught taking selfies would have their cameras confiscated. As a battlefield, Katniss understood why this was done, since her uncle had fought in war, but she was surprised how disrespectful people were when it came to places of tragedy.

She took a few pictures with her phone, making a note to send them to her mother and Prim later. Noticing how focused Peeta was, she wondered if there was something he wasn’t familiar with in terms of knowledge. When he took pictures of her for his painting, he’d done it with the fancy, professional-looking camera he was using to capture the ruins of the city. He’d ordered it some time after Caesar bought his original Girl on Fire painting so he could take pictures of scenery he’d paint on a later day. How he learnt to handle it was beyond Katniss, but Peeta was a quick learner and figured things out in his own way. The slight furrow of his eyebrows, his set jaw, and determined eyes made her want to capture her own pictures of the piece of architecture that stood before her, and she hoped he wouldn’t mind if she caught him in one of his modes. He didn’t even notice when she took the picture, but she’d show it to him when they were back at the hotel. Or maybe she’d keep it to herself for the time being.

“I can’t believe these buildings are still in-tact,” Katniss said once she saw Peeta set his camera down. “It’s been centuries since the war happened.”

“They must have been constructed with sturdy material,” Peeta replied.

“The Capitol’s always had a lot of money…they could afford to have indestructible buildings.”

Peeta chuckled. “Especially since they leeched off the Districts’ resources.”

Katniss rolled her eyes in annoyance with the city. It was outrageous how so much tyranny prevailed back then. If she had lived during those times, she wasn’t sure what she would had done. “Any idea how long they’ll stay before crumbling to the ground with all their history?”

Peeta shrugged with a shake of his head. “Probably a few more centuries. It really has to do with time, moisture, and oxygen.”

“And peace. I doubt it could survive another war,” Katniss pointed out.

After deciding they’d seen enough ruins, they directed their driver to the Capitol Botanical Gardens. Katniss had had her eye on an exhibit about medicinal plants and judging by their progress, they would be able to make it just in time for it. Choosing locations to visit hadn’t been an issue with Peeta because he was so agreeable. Even if he wasn’t as interested in botany the way Katniss was, she could tell he was still excited to visit the park, which was something she appreciated. She couldn’t begin to describe the variety of flora that was available, but Katniss felt entranced by the beauty of her surroundings. There were clicks of cameras, and she would have taken pictures herself at that moment, but she was too busy admiring the evergreen color of the leaves and the bright colors of the flowers that looked like they had just bloomed recently.

“Recognize anything?” Peeta asked, his camera back in his hands as he focused on a particular blue flower.

“A few plants, but most of these are new to me,” Katniss admitted. District 12 was home to a long list of species that she studied at her university, but it didn’t compare to the abundance of plants in the Capitol. “I might just stay here for a few more days.”

“I’m sure they’d appreciate having you here,” Peeta smiled. “Although…the train ride back home would be lonely without you.”

Katniss snorted. “Not like Effie would let me stay behind.”

Part of the exhibit had an area quarantined with a selection of plants that were marked as poisonous. Some of them appeared to look normal and even harmless, but the alarming patterns said otherwise and even the slightest touch could kill a person.

“If these didn’t have a warning label, I’d definitely confuse them for blueberries,” Peeta commented as he referred to a shrub of dark berries.

Their shiny coat didn’t fool Katniss; it was not only one of the most discussed plants in her courses, but her father had also taught her never to pick or eat them as they would kill a person before they reached their stomach. “It’s nightlock, Peeta. You’d be dead in a minute,” she said.

Focusing the camera lens, he snapped a shot of the glistening berries and turned to her. “I’m definitely not using them to bake something, then.”

“Not unless you want to kill your enemies,” Katniss laughed. She took a hold of his hand and led him along the exhibit, pointing out species of plants she knew and explaining some of their botanical or medicinal uses. Getting inspired, Peeta asked Katniss to pose for him in front of bushels of stunning, puffy red flowers called chrysanthecombs. She didn’t know what he was picturing in his head, but she knew he would create a masterpiece, not because she would be the center of the painting, but because Peeta’s skilled hands would be doing the work.

The large breakfast wasn’t going to keep their hunger satiated for long, and as much as it pained Katniss to leave the beautiful gardens, her growling stomach thoroughly convinced her that she and Peeta needed to eat. After texting Effie for restaurant recommendations, and after clarifying that they didn’t want anything fancy—normal food would do for them just fine—their escort offered a few options that served homier foods they may be interested in. Seeing as it was the Capitol, nothing went without being over the top or extra, but at least the place they picked had a decent ambient, even if the waiting staff had ridiculous hair and skin tones just like every other person in the city. _The Mockingjay_ was a modern, if hipster, restaurant that had a large range of dishes on their menu, which all sounded mouth-watering to Katniss save for the couple of options that had disgusting descriptions. She finally decided on the Lamb Delight, a stew with lamb and dried plums served with wild rice, while Peeta went for the Tang Chicken, a plate of chicken with oranges, cream sauce, and pearly white grain.

“I think you take your favorite color _very_ seriously,” Katniss teased as she took a spoonful of stew into her mouth.

“Sometimes, I just want to taste the sunset,” Peeta shot back, but he couldn’t help but laugh at the realization that the cream sauce did have the accuracy of the soft orange he loved so much. “You have to try it, though.” He cut a generous piece of chicken and bathed it with the sauce for Katniss and after tasting it, she felt jealous of Peeta for the first time. It _was_ a good option.

“Now you try mine,” she said, offering him a second spoon that had been placed along with the rest of her silverware.

Peeta brought his chair closer to her and carefully brought the spoon of warm stew to his lips. It didn’t even take him three seconds to process the flavor that Katniss was sure hit his mouth. “My taste buds would like to thank you for sharing that with me.”

“Let your taste buds know they’re always welcome to get more,” Katniss said. “But only if you let me taste the sunset again.”

“Of course!”

**

As much as Katniss would have liked for their meal to last a life time, it sadly came to an end, but she couldn’t complain one bit. Well, yes, she could. Peeta didn’t let her pay for her dish; he told her he’d take care of it and Katniss felt the unease she got when it came to owing favors. As much as she didn’t want to think of it in that sense because Peeta was her friend, she still highly valued his gestures and she would do her best to show her appreciation, and give back the favor, in a subtle way that Peeta wouldn’t catch it. So as a way to do so, when they walked along the sidewalk to look at the shops of the square, she didn’t even hesitate to go into the ice cream parlor to purchase a cone.

“I can’t believe you still have space in your stomach for dessert,” Peeta said as he raised his eyebrows. He was eyeing a certain flavor and it didn’t surprise Katniss when she read the label _Cinnamon_. What did surprise her was that there were labels with ridiculous names, and then there were ice creams with simple and mundane flavors. Nonetheless, she ordered a large cone with cinnamon ice cream and another with honey ice cream, earning a surprised and concerned look from Peeta. “Don’t make yourself sick there, honey.”

Katniss let out a laugh. “That one’s for me. The cinnamon one is for you.”

“You’re cheating again,” Peeta said as he crossed his arms. Cheating for them meant that they were repaying favors between one another and even though Katniss knew it bothered Peeta, owing favors bothered her and sadly, one of them was going to be uncomfortable for five minutes. It wouldn’t be her, though, and Peeta could live with it.

“Can you really consider it cheating if it’s ice cream, though?” Katniss asked. To prove her point, she paid for the cones and held them both in her hands, offering the cinnamon one to her companion. “You know you want it, big boy.”

Although Peeta wasn’t the largest guy, he was still sturdy, muscular, and well-built. Even though the nickname made him chuckle, and he was visibly peeved by Katniss’s gesture, he took the cone to humor her. “Why are you like this?”

“I should ask you the same question,” Katniss rolled her eyes.

“Blame our District for not liking debt,” Peeta snickered.

The rest of their afternoon was spent looking at the different shops along the square, including a bakery that Peeta couldn’t resist entering, and if Katniss was honest, she wanted to try some pastries herself. So far, her experience with the Capitol food had been positive, so she was sure the sweet treats would make her mouth explode with flavor. Upon their trek was an art museum and even if the day was coming to its end, it was still open and welcoming tourists to enter.

Peeta didn’t need to tell Katniss about his fascination with art for her to be aware of it. The giddy look on his face when he went in said everything to her and seeing the smile on his face made Katniss think that everything they’d gone through had led up to that moment. All the artworks in the room couldn’t compare to the joyful smile on his face. If only she were an artist so she could paint it, but alas he was the one that was gifted in the arts and he painted her into an ethereal creature instead of the other way around. Katniss wouldn’t mind spending the rest of the day in the museum, even if some pieces were strange and questionable.  

The afternoon shifted to evening and after getting their art fill, they received a call from Effie wondering when they would return to the hotel.

“Maybe later in the night. I’m taking Katniss out to dinner,” Peeta answered their ever-caring escort.

“You are?” Katniss asked quietly. Effie was on speaker so they could both hear what she’d say during the conversation. Peeta simply winked at her.

“But you can’t go to a restaurant this late in the evening without a reservation! And you are not taking her to a cheap cafeteria,” Effie shrilled. “You also need to ask her uncle for permission. It’s what gentlemen do, Peeta.”

Katniss and Peeta simultaneously rolled their eyes, but luckily, Effie couldn’t see or else they’d get lectured about having manners and respecting their elders. After Effie got Haymitch on the line, who was not in the greatest mood to begin with, Peeta held his attention, if only for a limited amount of time.

“Haymitch, may I take your niece out to dinner?” Peeta asked, his tone even and as professional as he could muster.

“Sure. Take her out with a shotgun if you get tired of her, too,” Haymitch said before they heard ice clanking against glass, surely from the alcohol he was drinking.

“Thanks for your blessing,” Katniss deadpanned, glad the awkward conversation was over. She didn’t expect any less from her uncle. It would have surprised her if he’d actually been in a good mood rather than being his usual sarcastic and cynical self. “I don’t mind going to a cheap cafeteria, Effie. As long as there’s food, I won’t complain.”

It took a while to convince her, but Effie finally agreed to let them decide where they wanted to dine. Besides, it wasn’t as if she could do anything about it through a phone call. Katniss considered going back to _The Mockingjay_ , but there were so many other options for them to pick from. _Arena_ sounded like the name of a gym, but it was another modern restaurant, which Katniss was thankful for because she wasn’t sure if she could endure going to a restaurant where she’d have to wear a dress and heels. It was like she was being interviewed again. Thankfully, Peeta wasn’t the type to want to go to a fancy place, either, and anywhere was fine with him.

The food wasn’t homie like their first restaurant; it was hearty and filling with burgers and fries made out of different kinds of meats and starchy vegetables, respectfully. The entrees were called Obstacle Courses, the beverages Drinks of Life, and the desserts Parachutes. And even if it was odd and the restaurant had flashing lights and a live band playing, and their bodyguards seated a couple of tables from them, Katniss couldn’t have picked a better place. A ‘cheap cafeteria’ could have been perfect for all she cared because the person she came with made the experience all the better. And they exchanged bites, fed each other fries, coaxed each other to try their milk shakes with odd names, and shouted at each other over the loud music. Still a better choice than a stuck-up fancy restaurant any day.

It would have been a solid ten had she not heard gasps from across the room and sets of eyes beginning to focus on them. In such a public place with their sunglasses and caps off, they were conspicuous enough even if they weren’t dressed up in elegant clothing. There were shouts that Katniss heard over the music, but they were distinct and very deliberately aimed at them and even if she couldn’t focus on every single one, she heard her name several times along with Peeta’s. She only had to give Peeta one look of desperation for him to understand and call the waitress for the check because she knew once they let people surround them, their dinner was over. Their bodyguards approached their table and stood at their sides, but Katniss doubted those two could keep off dozens upon dozens of people who were slowly beginning to make their way towards them. Truth-be-told, Katniss’s skepticism came from the fear of the increasing number of people that were forming a crowd in the restaurant, but at least being guided and shielded by three muscular men made her feel like she could get through the door in one piece.

“So much for a nice dinner,” Peeta pouted.

Despite her stomach quivering and her mind racing, she knew it wasn’t Peeta’s fault and it was something that was out of their control. She took his hand in hers and gave it a squeeze. “It was better than nice, really.”

“Until…you know.”

“Even with that,” Katniss pointed out. “Do you think they’ll follow us? I saw this park near the hotel that we could go to…”

Peeta couldn’t help but to let out a laugh. “Always wanting to be outside.”

“You didn’t answer my question.” But hearing him was infectious and her own laugh escaped her lips.

“The vehicle is faster than they can run. I think we’ll be fine at the park,” Peeta said.

Their poor driver must have been exhausted and their bodyguards as well, but they weren’t in the Capitol often and there were too many places for them to pass up an opportunity to at least drive by them. The park was quaint with a multitude of trees, benches, pathways, and a small bridge with a river running under it. With the moonlight and the evening breeze, it reminded Katniss of home sans all the artificial lights. All she wanted was to walk through it for a few minutes. Enough to help them digest the dinner and the screams that still rung in her ears.

With the park lamps lighting the way, they walked along a straight path, their bodyguards trailing them a few paces behind. Peeta had asked them for some privacy, but given the fact that they had just been swarmed by people at _Arena_ , they weren’t risking leaving the two alone. They allowed them a few feet of space, at least, but they still had a job to do. Katniss considered running from them, taking Peeta with her along for the chase. However, after walking and being out for the day, and after two satisfying meals, she doubted she could be able to keep up with the sprint. Maybe they could have walked the entire way across the park, but midway through, close to the bridge, Peeta convinced Katniss to rest and sit on one of the marble benches that were cemented every few feet apart from one another for visitors.

“Do you think the moon is that radiant, or is it part of the artificial lighting?” Peeta asked as they took a seat.

The cool material of the bench gave Katniss gooseflesh, which prompted her to sit as close to Peeta as possible for warmth. Once her cheek rested on his shoulder, she felt the rush of heat across her body like an electric current. “I think they could have engineered it here in the Capitol.”

Peeta gave her a wry smile. “Then, I guess the people from the Districts and the Capitol don’t see the same moon.”

“Whoever wrote that line was obviously lying,” Katniss nodded. “They’ve done it with plants and animals. I think they’re capable of doing it to the moon. Or, at least, make their own.” As silly as it sounded, she wouldn’t be surprised if the Capitol did such a thing.

“Fortunately, there’s things they can’t artificially create.” That made Katniss think, but she couldn’t help thinking Peeta’s comment held a double meaning. Maybe it was just her thoughts misbehaving, but she did agree with what he said.

“Mind giving me an example?” Katniss asked, raising a curious eyebrow.

“I guess bonds between people, for instance,” Peeta replied.

She thought about it, tried thinking of bonds that had been manipulated to become something the Capitol wanted, but she couldn’t come up with an example. Perhaps there were experiences like that, like that of Kohl and Parker from _Game of Survival_ and how they had to pretend to be in love to survive, but her mind drew a blank as far as real experiences were concerned. She brought her legs up to rest on the marble bench, a sign that she was exhausted yet refused to rest, and pressed her head against Peeta’s chest. If Peeta meant something by his comment, she wasn’t quite picking it up because the feel of his strong arm wrapped around her shoulder made her mind blur.

As she looked up at the bright moon with shining lights surrounding it, she got a glimpse of how the park lamps lit up Peeta’s face, and how they cast shadows along his neck and shoulders. Maybe the light was on her in such a way as well, but not a lot of details were registering due to her observing Peeta’s features.

Was it rude to gaze at her best friend? Was it wrong to admire him in the moonlight? Was it strange to stare at his lips, soft and supple, as they smiled at her? Maybe answering yes would get her to focus on other things. Answering no, however, kept her from moving away because it validated something. That she felt attracted to him? Perhaps. Neither a yes or a no would make things simpler or easier, but at that moment, she couldn’t move. It was as if once Peeta locked eyes with her, the moon and the park and the Capitol ceased to exist who remained were her and the boy leaning into her.

And the cold water that surprised them from behind.

The combination of the water’s temperature and the situation made her jump off the bench, but the anxiety lasted less than five seconds after hearing Peeta laugh at her reaction. He, too, had been hit with the water that squirt out of the sprinklers that were beginning their rounds, but he wasn’t moving away from his seat and instead, tried to keep his composure while laughing his ass off. Katniss couldn’t be mad because, quite frankly, it was comical to shoot straight up as if she’d been shocked, which wasn’t too far from the truth if she thought about it. If only for a moment she tried to resist the urge to laugh, but she couldn’t help joining him a few moments later.

“Do you think the Capitol can artificially create water?” Katniss asked as she undid her braid.

“With _their_ technology? I wouldn’t be surprised. I mean, we were just attacked by water,” Peeta pointed out. He tugged at his shirt, completely soaked, as it stuck to his skin.

“Maybe we should go back before you get sick or something,” Katniss giggled.

“I could just take my shirt off—”

“Nope! You’re getting to the hotel fully dressed. Unless you want to give Effie a heart attack.” Despite trying to be serious, Katniss’s humorous tone betrayed her.

“We’re already giving her a headache by being out so late. I don’t want to pay for her medical bills. Or graying hair,” Peeta added.

Technically, they were Effie’s responsibility since she was their escort, even if Peeta and Katniss were of age to be on their own. Effie wasn’t going through a major health crisis, but Katniss suspected her blood pressure had risen after neither of them answered her calls; they’d kept their phones on silent because they wanted to enjoy the quiet ambience of the park. Effie was acting like the worried mother neither Katniss nor Peeta had, with the dozen missed calls and text messages asking them when they would get back to the suite and requesting they answer her or else she’d send a search team to fetch them. She took her job seriously, but with how independent she and Peeta were—nobody kept an eye on them in the city they resided in so they relied on one another—it wasn’t something that they were used to having.

Needless to say when they returned to the hotel, Effie was waiting for them in the living room with a lecture on answering people’s phone calls, especially when they were out in a foreign city so late at night. Effie shooed them to their rooms, claiming afterwards that she had some beauty sleep to catch up on and her eyes were going to suffer from developing bags under them the following morning. An unamused Haymitch followed and their bodyguards exited the suite to head to their own rooms, leaving Peeta and Katniss to their own devices. In her room, she could analyze and replay that very short moment where Peeta leaned into her. Maybe he was going to whisper something to her? Maybe he was going to do something completely different. But the more she thought about it, the more she denied every other possibility. He wanted to kiss her. It had happened the previous night and it had happened then. The only thing that Katniss wasn’t sure of was how to test the waters. The shower she took didn’t help her and going through the things she got during their adventures didn’t distract her enough. Everything she saw reminded her of Peeta.

Perhaps he was still awake. He wasn’t as restless as Katniss, but he still held off sleeping many times for exams and assignments. Trying to think of a reason to summon him to her room, her eyes landed on the small box of pastries he’d gotten at the bakery. She’d carried it for him in her bag and had forgotten to give it to him once they got back…

[Katniss]: Come get your box or I’ll eat your pastries.

[Peeta]: *screeches* I need them for science.

[Katniss]: Yeah, I’m sure the world would benefit the knowledge of making a macaron.

The knock on her door indicated Peeta was on the other side and when she called the okay to come inside, he started to chuckle. “I’ll bake you some once I learn how to make them.”

“Learn quickly. They look good!” She handed him the box, but by doing so, she was giving away something more than just sweets. That small chance she wanted was slipping away with every step he took towards the door.

“Peeta?”

He turned back to look at her, a curious expression on his face.

She hesitated, thinking about what to say to him, but giving it too much thought was confusing her. She wasn’t the best at expressing herself, not like Peeta anyway.

“Will you stay with me?”

Now it was his turn to think…only, his decisions were quicker than hers and it put her thought process to shame. “Yeah.” Setting his box on the desk where hers rested, he made his way towards her and she made space for him in her bed, sharing the pillows, blankets and sheets with him. Once settled in, she cuddled up next to him, closing her eyes when she felt his strong arm around her. There was that sensation she felt earlier, the feeling of safety and warmth and something unidentifiable yet intense, and it thundered against her chest like a bomb waiting to explode. She sighed against him, the clean material of his pajama shirt and the fresh scent of soap on his skin contributing to her relaxation. Nothing else seemed to exist except for them.

“Always.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope this story makes people happy. These two make me happy and I want them to be happy... The places they went to, I tried to keep them related to their interests, and I also used some bits from the war in Mockingjay for the ruins. Also, the bond Peeta is talking about? I think back to that part in Catching Fire when Katniss says her relationship with Peeta was something for the Capitol, something along those lines. But they couldn't have fabricated it even if they tried. It was just a rough time for Katniss. In this story, her relationship with Peeta is already established (as you can see, they are great and close friends ;) ). I just like to use some parallels I guess. I also like to use lines they've said. It's not everlark without iconic quotes. Let me know what you think!


	12. Part 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm supposed to be writing two essays, but instead I wrote this. I actually wrote this early so I'm proud of that! Thank you for everyone that has supported this fic! It's developed a life of its own and I'm just writing as I go, but I promise it's going to get somewhere. I hope you enjoy!!
> 
> Disclaimer: The Hunger Games trilogy belongs to Suzanne Collins. I just use her characters as barbie dolls to play with and write stories about them.

Katniss wondered if what she did—invited Peeta into her bed—was a good idea. It’s not like they were doing anything inappropriate and she trusted Peeta enough to not worry about him doing anything he shouldn’t. They both knew about boundaries, but the closer they got, the less she seemed to care about many things that made her feel uncomfortable. For one thing, she evaluated her past friendships with other guys, and she knew that there was a stark difference between them and the one she had with that boy that rested beside her. Somehow she couldn’t see herself doing the same thing with Gale or Finnick, but even then she had completely different reasons for that. She didn’t know Finnick the way she knew Peeta, but she knew Gale for a longer time than either of them on a personal level. As for time itself, she and Peeta had been in school together, but never actually talked or exchanged many words other than the occasional formality or in-class group assignments. Now, things were different. She hadn’t given it much thought until that morning when she received a text message from Gale. Sometimes, the tone of a message was lost because of how dry they sounded through written text, but she could read her messages in the sender’s voice, whether they were from Peeta, Gale, or Finnick. Peeta’s tone was always lighthearted and witty whereas Finnick’s was mischievous and joking. Gale’s was more serious and drier, even if they could play around at times.

[Gale]: Nice to see you found a new best friend.

What did he even mean by that? After Gale started dating Madge, Katniss felt left out. She could be on her own and not exactly mind, but she admitted she missed her friends spending time with her. Until Peeta came into her life, she did things by herself. It was only natural that she’d develop an attachment to him. As far as she knew, he wasn’t dating anyone, at least not since they became friends, and he hadn’t mentioned dating anyone during the months they’d spent together. She hadn’t questioned it, either, and she hoped to keep it that way.

She left Gale on read and decided that sleep was a much better option than texting so early in the morning and left her phone on the night stand, turning to look at a sleeping Peeta who had curled around her. It was cute to see him act so protectively, but he looked so innocent when he slept, younger and vulnerable. Well…at least now they couldn’t say they didn’t sleep with each other. Now she couldn’t be mad at Peeta’s comment he let slip during their interview. But not everyone could say they’d slept in the same bed with their best friend without having some sort of sexual contact, so at least she was proud they could respect each other and actually sleep.

Pushing back the curls that had gathered around his forehead, Katniss observed Peeta with a newly found lens. She hadn’t noticed how strong his jaw was and how smooth his skin looked, or how flushed his cheeks got as he rested. Even his pink lips looked softer and fuller… They always seemed to give her so many smiles that Katniss wondered if Peeta’s face ever hurt. When he made her laugh with absurd stories or blunt situations coated with swear words, Katniss could feel just how her cheeks ached and how her eyes burned with tears. Perhaps it happened to him as well because of how rosy his cheeks got and the way he tilted his head back when he laughed clearly indicated he was also enjoying what he said. Even when she said something that wasn’t meant to be funny, he found a way to either bring out its humor or simply let out a chuckle. Katniss knew she wasn’t the funniest person, but her dark sense of humor and sarcasm amused Peeta regardless. Maybe it was because he was always laughing that she couldn’t fully notice how supple his lips were when they weren’t smiling. She’d seen him annoyed and upset a couple of times, and being a human being, Peeta was capable of having a large range of emotions just like Katniss. However, more often than not he was a ray of sunshine and Katniss couldn’t describe the energy that radiated from him. She just knew it was infectious and if she was ever feeling upset or down before, she knew that Peeta would brighten up her mood, or at least comfort her so she could process her own emotions.

For the time being, as he slept, all Katniss could make out from looking at him was his relaxed expression. As she leaned into him, not only could she focus on his features better, but she could also feel the heat that came from his breath and hear the light snores that sounded adorable. Why had he agreed to stay with her? Not that she minded because she knew Peeta was willing to do just about anything for her. However, it was an impulsive thing for both of them. What he said, too, had her turning it over and over in her head.

_“Always.”_

The more she thought about it, the more lost she felt, but the option of asking him didn’t seem to be the best idea. What would be his explanation? _‘It’s because we’re best friends’_? Somehow, that didn’t make sense. Maybe he would have done the same thing if Johanna or Finnick would have asked him, but it didn’t feel too plausible because they wouldn’t ask him to stay with them in their bed in the first place. She didn’t even really know exactly why she asked him to be there, either. All she knew was that she didn’t want him to leave. They had had such a great time together that being separated by sleeping in different rooms didn’t sit well with her. It made more sense they stay together through the night, too…

What was so different now than from any other night back in their apartments? She could easily invite him to stay for the night in her room, so why now of all the days? The sight-seeing, the dinner, the walk through the park were certainly different. They’d eaten together, but never had dinner like that. It felt more intimate and private, and she saw Peeta in a new light that she hadn’t noticed before. His eyes shone in a different light, his smile was brighter and more ecstatic, and even the way he carried himself felt more confident and shier at the same time. Had she behaved differently, too? Had he noticed anything new from her? Too many thoughts swirled in her head and made her world stop and spin before feeling like her mind blanked out. The answer was clear and foggy, and without an answer from Peeta, she couldn’t determine anything. Asking him directly, though…would be weird, wouldn’t it?

But then she remembered how he had leaned into her at the park and suddenly, those lips that curved up with joy and spoke words of gold gave her a newly found sense of appreciation. The impulsive that hit her the previous night made an appearance again and her mind lost control of her body as it did what it pleased with her. It pushed her to lean forward and gently press her lips upon his, timidly feeling the way his mouth felt against hers.

They were as soft as they looked. It was brief, and frankly Katniss wished she’d been bold enough to wake him so he would be aware of what she did, but there was the uncertainty of Peeta’s actual feelings. If anything, it would be her little secret. As she curled into him, she brought her fingers up to her lips, replaying in her mind the small peck she gave him and thinking about how it would feel if he would participate. Would he be gentle or impatient? Innocent or passionate? Timid or bold? Her imagination took her to places she hadn’t thought of before involving Peeta and she couldn’t help like she was committing some sort of sin. Everyone had visualized kissing their best friend, right? That was completely normal!

She wasn’t sure how long she stayed lost in thought, but at some point, she dozed off again until the moment her door opened. She sat up in defense only to find Effie on the other side of the door along with her uncle. The grimace on her face must have indicated to them that she didn’t appreciate being awakened so abruptly, but Effie looked concerned.

“Have you seen Peeta?”

The inevitable yawn that escaped her lips allowed her to look to the side, expecting for her friend to be there beside her. It wouldn’t make sense that Effie would ask her about Peeta if she hadn’t already seen him lying next to her.

“Have you tried his room?” Katniss asked with a bit of annoyance.

“I assumed he would be with you. His bed was neatly made…and you two came back so late we thought…”

“That he’d spent the night with me?” Filling in the words for their escort, Katniss raised an eyebrow at her. He _had_ slept beside her, but she wouldn’t admit that to either adult in front of her. Peeta could have gone anywhere after waking up and at least he had the common sense to not wake her up. “Do you really need my uncle following you around?”

“I came just in case _I did_ find him sleeping with you,” Haymitch answered, his tone a bit cutting, which Katniss thought didn’t fit him. He sounded too much like a father for her own liking.

“Well, he’s not here, so try somewhere else,” Katniss bit back. “And even if he _was_ here, why would it be your business?”

“If who was here?”

Their attention shifted from Katniss to Peeta and for once, she wasn’t very pleased with that because she wanted to know Haymitch’s reasons for suddenly taking an interest in her life.

“Peeta! We have been looking all over the place for you!” Effie took her phone out, pressing buttons here and there as she spoke. “I have Caesar waiting for you to take his call. It’s about the contract.”

“Already? He said it wouldn’t be ready until a week from now,” Peeta said as he came into the room. “You have to see the roof, Katniss. It’s pretty amazing.”

“Maybe you can take me later, after you take care of that important call,” Katniss proposed with a lazy smile.

Winking at her, he turned to look at Effie before she handed him the cell phone. She guided him out of the room, but Katniss could hear Peeta’s voice as he walked along the hall to the living room. Only Haymitch remained in her room, but his gaze analyzed her. She glared back at him, challenging him with her eyes which were as cold and steely as his own.

“You’re not very good at lying, sweetheart,” Haymitch said. “Getting laid, though…play it safe.”

Katniss scoffed at him, tossing him a pillow with irritation and embarrassment. She shouldn’t have felt ashamed because nothing had happened between her and Peeta, but she still felt defensive as heat rushed to her face.

“We didn’t do anything!”

“Sure you didn’t. That’s why you’re so angry all of a sudden.”

“We’re just friends. Why is everyone assuming we have a relationship or sex?” She asked with frustration.

She ran a hand through her hair and looked away from her uncle and to her dismay, he closed the door behind him and took a seat at the edge of her bed.

“Your body language has a lot to do with it, for one thing,” Haymitch answered. “Nothing wrong with dating a friend. Just don’t lead each other on. That’s where problems start.”

“What do you mean?” Katniss felt confused with Haymitch’s cryptic messages for sentences. She had woken up just moments before and she didn’t need a conversation like this to greet her in the morning.

“He took you out to _dinner_ , Katniss,” Haymitch pointed out.

“So? We always go out to eat together,” Katniss shrugged. “It’s normal for us.”

“He asked me for permission.”

“Because Effie told him to.”

“I think he would have asked me regardless of being instructed to do so. It’s not just that, though. You two are becoming public figures because of the paintings. You’re a hot topic and believe me, a picture of either of you is worth a lot right now. This city loves feeding on the new kids and the popular kids, especially the paparazzi. Guess which one you are.”

Katniss had crossed her arms and at first, averted her gaze to the wall instead of facing her uncle. Yet as he continued to speak, what he said started to dawn on her. “They took pictures of us from yesterday?”

“And it’s already on the news,” Haymitch nodded, a mocking smile pressed on his mouth. “How refreshing were the sprinklers?”

With a horrified expression and wide eyes, she stared at him, knowing fully well what he meant by that. “I thought the security guards were supposed to take care of us.”

“They were there to protect you, not keep you out of the public eye,” Haymitch said with a scowl. “You saw those reports from yesterday. Even if you say it isn’t true, to them, it’s more real than their ridiculously painted skin and hair. That’s why I’m saying if you know where you and Peeta stand, don’t lead him on. Those pictures of you will paint a different picture for him if he sees them. Might put a strain on your friendship. Or friction, depending on you.” He winked at her, but it lacked Peeta’s playfulness.

She tossed him another pillow with more force this time and she had the satisfaction of seeing it hit the right side of his face.

“Fine, I believe you. If you _had_ gotten laid you wouldn’t be this grumpy, believe me.”

“Out!” Katniss shrieked, her face moments away from melting off of her skin from how much heat she felt. She armed herself with another pillow and stood up to push him off her bed.

She heard him laugh as he stood, avoiding her pillow by ducking out of the way. He took something out of his pocket and left it on her desk before walking out. “Don’t rock his world too hard, sweetheart!”

The door closed before another pillow could hit him, but the lasting effect stayed with her. She looked at what he left for her only to gape in disbelief at the packets of condoms, not believing that her uncle would think such things from her. There was a moment of hesitation before she reached for them, inspecting the foil packets with disgust. This wasn’t happening; her private life could not become the public’s business. Unfortunately, she couldn’t deny that her uncle had a point. If the news got that crazy over an interview, who was to say they wouldn’t do the same to pictures of her and Peeta on a supposed date?

The knock on her door surprised her, making her drop the packets in a moment of panic. Collecting them frantically, she felt like she was trying to hide a clandestine object, but she didn’t want the person behind the door to see them, much less know she had them. “Wait!” Gathering them was like trying to put together her wits, but as soon as she had them all in her hand and shoved them underneath her pillow, she yelled out the okay to come inside. If it was Effie, she did not want the awkward conversation she had had with her uncle to get repeated. She wasn’t sure if she felt relief or anxiety when she saw Peeta come through the door, but at least he wouldn’t hound her about anything that alluded to them having sex.

“I heard you yell. Are you alright?”

“Relatively speaking.” In reality, she had been shaken to her core with the assumptions that she and her friend had a relationship that included more than just innocent touching, and they were both to blame for the way they acted around each other.

The sight of pillows on the floor caught Peeta’s attention, but deciding against asking her, he simply went to pick them up. Even though he never mentioned it, Katniss knew how much a mess bothered Peeta. He stress-cleaned, but seeing anything out of place caused the stress, and by cleaning it up he felt better instantly. It amused Katniss that his desire to have things in order was expressed through organizing things himself. Watching him prompted her to pick up the rest of the pillows she had thrown and put them aside to make her bed. Unfortunately, by doing so and by having Peeta’s help, he moved the pillows from the bed, including the one that she so desperately hoped would not get moved so as to cover the damn rubber packets that felt like they had neon signs on them.

“What’s this?” he asked.

On instinct, Katniss jumped onto the bed and reached for them, taking them in her hands and pressing them to her chest. “They’re for me to know and for you to never find out.”

“Oh, really?” Peeta asked, scooping the blankets into his arms before placing them on the desk chair. “Are they that special?”

“’Special’ isn’t exactly the right word,” she drawled out as she rolled her eyes.

“Then, why are you holding them like your life depends on them?” He poked her stomach and chuckled when he saw her jump, but her grasp on the small packets wouldn’t budge.

“I wouldn’t say they’re that important. It’s more…complicated than that,” she sighed.

“Oh, I think they matter some to you, what with you not wanting me to see them and all,” Peeta pointed out. “You missed one, though, or rather, it missed you.” He reached for the packet that rested on the floor and brought it up, reading the label on it with curiosity. “Where did you get _these_?”

“ _I_ didn’t get them!” Katniss countered. “They were given to me!”

“By who? They look fancy.”

“They are not fancy! They are repulsive!” Katniss was sure her face was flushed and it was getting a kick out of Peeta who couldn’t help holding back a laugh. “Remember how…there were these girls giving things out in school? Well, they gave some to me. I forgot to throw them out.”

Peeta raised an eyebrow at her, taking a long look at her before turning back to the packets. “And you say _I’m_ bad at lying,” he mused. “It’s okay to have these. You’re an adult, Katniss. Having sex is normal.”

“You say that like you’ve done it yourself,” Katniss said as she leaned on her elbow to look at him.

“Well…maybe I have.” It was Peeta’s turn to look away, and it was one of the only times Katniss had seen him shy away from something. She didn’t want to press the subject in fear of making him uncomfortable, but she couldn’t deny that she wanted to know more.

She sat up to give him her full attention and set the condoms on the bed beside her. “Did…you enjoy it?”

“I kind of did…kind of felt a bit rushed.”

“Do you mind me asking with who?”

“Um…during my first semester with my then-girlfriend.” As he spoke, he rubbed the back of his neck, something he did when he wanted to ease tension he felt.

“Oh,” Katniss gulped, clearing her throat as she tried to keep the conversation from becoming even more awkward. However, her curiosity couldn’t understand that she had to leave the subject alone. “Why have you never told me about this girlfriend?”

“I broke up with her some time before you and I became friends. She wasn’t the most…faithful partner.”

Hearing the words and processing them were two completely different things and Katniss had a hard time doing the latter. Processing required rationality, but after what Peeta told her, nothing made sense. There were so many things that she wanted to say, but it would have sounded like an incomprehensible pile of word vomit and her lack of composure must have been evident in how she stared at him in disbelief. There was no way in the world that someone as sweet and kind as Peeta could have something so unjust happen to him. Nobody deserved it, but the least likely person to go through that in Katniss’s mind would be the boy sitting beside her. There was something else besides the disbelief, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on it. Rage? Fury? She hadn’t heard about this girl, but she already hated her entire existence just for the mere act of putting Peeta in such a difficult situation.

Her mouth felt drier than a desert, but she couldn’t just stay quiet, not after what she heard—and processed—what Peeta told her. “I will kick her ass if I find out who she is.”

“You and Jo both.” A shy smile graced Peeta’s lips. “Don’t worry about it. I think she transferred out of UD12 and went back to UD1.”

“I will go to UD1 specifically to hunt her down. And you know how good of a hunter I am.”

“I know,” Peeta said. “I’m sure you’d terrify her.”

Katniss crawled towards him and wrapped her arms around him, burying her face on the crook of his neck. “I’m sorry I brought it up. I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable.”

“I would have told you at some point.” She felt Peeta’s hand caress her hair gently, but she wondered if he did it more for his sake than for hers. “What about you? Had a first time before?”

She stiffened impulsively at the question. “Nope. And every time Darius wanted to, I’d shut him down quickly.”

“Well deserved.” She could only imagine the smirk on Peeta’s face as he said that. Truth-be-told, she couldn’t blame him.

“Wanna keep these in your back pocket?” Katniss asked as she let go of Peeta and reached for the foil packets, this time lacking the embarrassment from before. “You never know when you’ll need them,” she said with a wink.

“Keep some for yourself, too. They may come in handy in case you ever decide it’s time.” Now, she could see his smirk and it was both glorious and the most mischievous grin she’d ever seen. Had Finnick taught him to smile like that?

“Oh, hush. Are you going to show me the roof or are we just going to keep talking about sex?”

“I mean, I could keep going, but that’s really all up to you, sweetheart.”

Before she could even think about it, she got up and tossed him a pillow in response.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I didn't really want to bring up these topics so soon, but they kind of came out on their own and I had to use them. Hopefully, you guys enjoy it and I also hope it doesn't sound like it's out of place! I wasn't sure if the topic of condoms and sex talk were considered nsfw so I won't be moving up the rating since there are no actual sex scenes to go with the talk and all... Let me know what you think!


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